One Name
by Nightflame203
Summary: I'm Agent P, O.W.C.A's top agent, and I "have no weaknesses". Ha. Sometimes I wish that was true. I actually have several weaknesses. My biggest right now is one name. That's all, one name. One name can cause me to lose my guard- and a fight. One name can throw me off-balance and send me stumbling to the floor. And that one name is Fiona. Perry/OC, rated T 'cause I'm paranoid.
1. Prologue

**Hey, guys! I'm back from the trip with a new story! I know I promised an updating spree when I got back, and, technically, you do get one. Just…. It's not very evenly distributed…. ;P ;P In fact, this might be the only story I'll update…. Oops. *smiles sheepishly***

 **Anyway….. I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

 _Fiona_. The name burned in Perry's mind. He moaned, tossing and turning a little bit before opening his eyesup. He wasin his bed. Phineas and Ferb were already awake and building, so he was alone in the room. _Fiona_. Five years  
and Perry could still pick up a bit of her scent on the bed.

He sat up, still partly expecting to see Fiona enter the room. Nothing happened. _Fiona's gone_ , Perry reminded himself. _Fiona's gone. Fiona's gone._ Perry closed his eyes to hold back the tears.

 _Fiona is gone. Fiona is gone. Fiona is gone._ Five years and it didn't get any easier to remind himself that. Five years and the pain was still as fresh as the day Perry lost her.

 _Fiona. Fiona_. Perry could feel the all-too familiar needle stab at his heart. _Fiona. Fiona. Fiona's gone. Fiona. Fiona. Fiona's gone._

Perry growled, grabbed the nearest pillow, and placed it on his head, hoping to block out the thoughts. He went through this every day- EVERY DAY- for five years, but it never got easier. It seemed to get harder, in fact.

After about five more minutes of the familiar yet unbearable pain, Perry placed the pillow back in its spot, sat up, inhaled deeply, and opened his eyes. It was possible for him to lie in bed, frozen with pain all day, but he shouldn't. He had a job to  
do.

Perry took one more deep breath in, pushing Fiona as far back in his mind as he could. He then stood up and walked to his nearest lair entrance. _They're probably waiting for me._

Sure enough, when Perry arrived in his lair, Harry, Maggie, Karen, and Doof were already there. But one was missing. The newest edition to the team.

Harry and Maggie were arguing, Doof was, what do you know, messing with- and continuously falling off of- one of Perry's vehicles, and Karen was mindlessly padding about, occasionally meowing. They all turned to Perry when they spotted him- well, all  
except Karen.

"Alright, team," Perry began, clasping his paws together, "let's get started."

 **Well… That's quite a start, isn't it?**


	2. Chapter 1

**Quick update, am I right? Well, I already have the next 2 1/2 chapters written xD xD**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

"Well," began Doof, "what's the plan?"

"What's the plan? What's the plan?" Maggie squawked.

Perry shot her a glare. _"Please don't do that right now."_ Luckily, Maggie seemed to get the gist of his look.

"Before we can do anything else, we have to wait for Ellie," Perry replied to Doof's question.

At his mention of Elizabeth the echidna, the newest member of their team, both Harry and Heinz began making smooching noises.

"Perry and Elizabeth, sitting in a tree," Harry began, smirking.

Perry held his paw up. "Alright, either you stop right there, or I make you stop."

Harry broke down into laughter, and Perry rolled his eyes. Doof just continued with the smooching noises. "Real mature, guys. We're not even that close in age!"

"Tons of couples are about six years apart from the other," Heinz responded.

Perry crossed his arms and raised his eyebrow. "Like...?"

"Um..." Doof thought for a moment. "Padmé and Anakin from Star Wars?"

"Yeah, and see how that turned out in the end?" Perry retorted. "Guys, Ellie and I are just friends."

Harry had managed to stop laughing. "Then why do you call her Ellie?"

"That's what everyone calls her."

"Really? 'Cause I don't remember ever calling her that." Harry turned to Heinz. "You?"

Doofenshmirtz shook his head. "And we've known her for, what, seven years?"

Perry rolled his eyes again. "Well, whether you believe it or not, Elizabeth and I are just friends. And it's going to stay that way."

"Whatever you say, chief," Harry muttered, grinning.

Karen walked by on all fours, meowing. Perry sighed and followed her over to a more private area. "Karen, what have I said about playing mindless? You don't need to around us. We won't blow your cover to anyone- we're all agents."

The cat sighed, focused her eyes, and stood up. "Sorry, it's just become instinct over the years, I guess."

"Don't worry, I get it. Just try to stop, and it'll be easier." Perry grinned. "You're really talented, but that doesn't do you- or anyone else- any good if you're always mindless and unfocused."

"So..." Karen changed the subject. "You never answered Doof's question of what the plan was."

"And I said I wanted to wait for Ellie before explaining."

"And then they began the teasing," Karen finished with a sigh. She hesitated, then asked, "Were you telling the truth about you and Elizabeth? Are you really 'just friends'?"

Perry groaned. "Yes! We are just friends! We will never be anything more than friends!"

Karen shrank back a little.

Perry rubbed the bridge of his beak, realizing how he had responded. "Sorry, rough morning."

"It's fine." Karen paused. "I'm used to it. It seems like every morning's been rough on you for the past... Well, several years now."

"Five years, to be precise," Perry sighed.

"Wow..." Karen hesitated. "I know it's not my place to be asking, but what happened?"

"Excuse me?"

"What happened to cause all those mornings to be so difficult?"

Perry really didn't want to be harsh on Karen, but it felt like the only way he could put his point across was by being harsh. Luckily, a familiar female voice interrupted the conversation and saved Perry. "Sorry I'm late!"

The platypus turned around and spotted Elizabeth the echidna running into the lair, huffing. She had obviously been running for a while.

"It's fine, Ellie," Perry grinned. The echidna was still considered a fairly new agent. She had been trained for a year or so by Perry's team and became an official agent about five years ago. Elizabeth was one of Perry's closest friends, even though  
he was six years older than her. "We're not really doing anything, anyway."

He heard a squawk behind him and sighed, not even bothering to turn. "Except terrorizing the bird. Doof! Stop whatever you're doing to Maggie!"

"Sorry!" the ex-"evil" scientist called back.

Elizabeth giggled. "So, nobody's changed drastically overnight. That's nice to know."

Perry chuckled. "Yep, everyone's the same as yesterday." He heard Karen and Harry arguing and sighed. "Sadly."

The echidna giggled again, and Perry thought about what Harry and Doof had said. There was absolutely nothing romantic in his and Elizabeth's relationship. At least, nothing on Perry's side of it. He had found out that Ellie had a crush on him several  
years ago, but he had just recently had his heart broken and let her down easy.

Perry wasn't sure if she still felt the same or not. Either way, it didn't really matter. They were close friends, even if they would never become anything else.

"So what's the plan, chief?" Ellie asked brightly.

Perry whistled the rest of the team over before answering. "Quite a few people have wondered what the plan for today is. It's actually fairly simple. We've got-" Perry checked his watch- "another twenty minutes in which Major Monogram could brief us.  
If he doesn't, that means he wants us to train."

"Again?"

"Is there something you'd like to say, Harry?" Perry inquired, crossing his arms.

The hyena hesitated. "We've completed every single training course O.W.C.A. has access to probably, well, at least twenty times each." The others nodded, and Perry caught a couple hushed murmurs of agreement.

"Then it should be easier this time," Perry replied. "Trust me, you're lucky. We didn't have these training courses when I was an A.I.T. in O.W.C.A."

"Well," Harry argued, "we're not A.I.T's anymore."

Perry opened his mouth to retort, but a voice behind him spoke up first. "So sad. Suck it up!"

The platypus turned in surprise, and Elizabeth smiled sweetly. "You're welcome."

Ellie was considered the baby of the team- and she was, she was a lot younger than everyone else. The echidna was really sweet and soft most of the time, but, BOY, she could be tough. At least, enough to shock everyone.

Luckily, Harry didn't have to worry about the training because Major Monogram appeared on the screen about ten minutes later. All six agents snapped to attention and saluted. "Sir," Perry said.

He had to force himself not to glare at the Major. It was his fault that Perry had lost Fiona. Five years and Perry could still feel hostility towards Major Monogram. The Major had found out about Perry's relationship with Fiona, and he didn't feel comfortable  
with his top agent in a relationship.

 _"I have found out about Fiona, your mate. And I don't really feel comfortable with that."_

 _"Sir?" Perry asked nervously._

 _Major Monogram inhaled. "Agent P. I need you to pick between Fiona and the agency. If you choose Fiona, you can't see your host family again. If you choose O.W.C.A, I'm afraid you can't see Fiona again."_

 _Perry suddenly needed to clutch the closest chair to keep himself from falling. Either he lost Fiona, the love of his life, or he lost Linda, Lawrence, Candace, and the boys. How could he choose between them?_

 _"But, sir, I can't-" Perry suddenly remembered not to argue with his Major and bowed his head. Partly in admission, partly so Major Monogram wouldn't see the tears rolling down his cheeks. This was the hardest decision ever. Either way, Perry would lose someone he loved._

Perry had attempted to come up with a plan in which he could have both the Flynn-Fletchersand his mate, but apparently Fiona had heard Major Monogram talking to Perry. And she had taken matters into her own paws.

 _"Perry," Fiona said quietly, "I know Major Monogram gave you the choice. I also know that you wouldn't survive without the Flynn-Fletchers." She inhaled. "Which is why I'll go on and leave so you don't have to deal with the impossible choice."_

 _Perry could feel his heart beating loudly. "But, Fiona, I'll never be able to see you again!" He heard his voice crack._

 _Fiona's voice wavered, and Perry could see tears form in her eyes. "I know."_

 _Her mate placed his paw on her cheek and brushed away a tear with his thumb. "I love you." Perry hoped Fiona would hear the plea in his voice._

 _Fiona placed her paw on his. "I love you, too." No, she didn't hear it. Perry's stubborn mate was really leaving. She lifted Perry's paw off of her cheek and backed out of his reach before turning and walking away. "Goodbye, Perry." Perry heard his mate's- maybe ex-mate, actually- voice crack._

 _Perry's world crumbled around him, and he could barely breathe for a few moments. "Bye." He watched silently as Fiona left the room._

 _As soon as she was gone, Perry growled and punched the closest wall, his eyes blinded with tears and rage. After a couple minutes, he collapsed onto the floor, sobbing. Fiona was gone._

 **:'( :'( :'(**


	3. Chapter 2

**I'm back with yet another chapter!**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

 **(Perry's POV)**

"What's the mission, sir?" Ellie asked curiously. That brought Perry back from his painful flashbacks.

Major Monogram cleared his throat before answering. "There's a hospital on the edge of the Tri-State Area that is almost completely unknown and uncharted. And very good at lying low. We have seen some suspicious activity around there. We're not sure how drastically the law is being broken there, which is why we need you to go undercover for a few days, infiltrate the hospital, and figure out what's going on."

"So this won't be a one-day mission?" Karen inquired.

The Major shook his head. "No. But it should only take a week maximum."

"And when we figure out what's going on, do we let you know and then stop it?" Perry needed to make sure.

Major Monogram nodded. "Yes, unless I say otherwise when you tell me."

"Understood, sir."

"Good luck, agents." The screen flickered and went black.

"Alright, you heard him!" Perry called. "Let's get going."

Ellie ran over to him. "Do we need to pack anything?"

Perry smiled and shook his head. "It's already packed up. Come on, let's get in."

The team piled into Perry's rocketcar- which had been expanded after the team began. It now looked almost exactly like how it used to, but it was now larger. Large enough to hold the whole team, "And there's room one extra person," Perry said after everyone had gotten in.

He ignited the car, and it took off. It was about twenty minutes later when Maggie shouted, "Hospital ahead! Hospital ahead!"

"Okay, please try to be quiet," Perry hissed back. "We don't want to let everyone know we're here. This is supposed to be an undercover mission, remember?"

"Sorry."

Perry quietly parked the car behind some bushes near the hospital. The team silently got out and crept up closer to the bushes. Two woman, both with the word, "Staff" on their shirts, stepped out of the front doors. "Sh," Perry whispered to his team. "Let's listen."

Luckily, they were close enough to just barely hear. "I don't know why we keep that girl. She's useless."

The older woman replied calmly. "She's workforce."

"First of all, ma'am, she's five years old. Secondly, she's always playing with that doll." The younger woman paused. "And, Ms. Purneshouce, to be honest, she's not even a 'she', she's an 'it'."

"Ms. Purneshouce" just calmly crossed her arms behind her back. "And- Miss Aton, wasn't it? You're fired."

"Miss Aton" dipped her head. "Understood, ma'am." She began walking off.

The team bent down behind the bushes. "What was that about?" Doof asked.

"What did she mean, 'she's not even a "she", she's an "it"'?" Karen inquired.

Perry shrugged. "It's possible she meant an animal."

"So you're saying there could be a five year-old female animal in there that's being forced to work for the hospital?" Elizabeth asked quietly.

Perry blinked sympathetically. He knew how much that sort of thing bothered the echidna. "That could be it." He was sitting next to Ellie, and he used that to comfort her by gently placing his left arm around her and pulling her up against him.

 **(Karen's POV)**

Karen's eyes narrowed a little when she saw what Perry did with Elizabeth. Perry claimed to be "just friends", yet he hugged her and kissed her forehead!

 **(Perry's POV)**

Perry saw the look Karen gave him, his arm still wrapped around Ellie. No matter how it looked, Perry had no romantic feelings for Elizabeth. Thinking about it, she wasn't really just his friend, though. Ellie was like the little sister Perry never had.

After a couple minutes of silence, Elizabeth spoke up again. "Did anyone else notice how that one woman's last name sounds like 'pernicious'?"

"Well, it's a better last name than the last names of most of the L.O.V.E.M.U.F.F.I.N. scientists," Heinz grinned. "Trust me, I know."

"What's the plan of attack?" Harry asked.

"First off, we're not attacking," Perry answered. "We're infiltrating. That's obviously a regular, human hospital, which means we need Heinz to pretend to be sick, so he can spy."

"You're trusting Doof by himself?" Karen asked incredulously.

"Of course not," Perry retorted. "If they have an animal working in there, then that means that animals are allowed in the hospital. One of us will go in with him and pretend to be his loyal pet who'll stick with him through anything. The rest of us will camp here."

"I'm staying here," Harry immediately said.

"I'm staying with Harry!" Maggie squawked.

"Okay, but who should go with me?" Doofenshmirtz asked.

"I think Perry should," said Elizabeth softly, smiling at the platypus.

Harry broke down in laughter.

"Yes?" Karen inquired irritably; she and Harry didn't exactly get along.

"If we want to blend in, I don't think it's a good idea for Doof to go into a hospital with a pet platypus- that's not normal."

"No one questions me being the Flynn-Fletcher's pet," Perry retorted.

"No offense, but your family isn't normal."

"I think Perry should go, too," Karen replied. Perry shot the cat a grateful smile as she continued. "Not only has he been at this longer than the rest of us, but he's O.W.C.A's top. And there's a reason why."

Harry crossed his arms, realizing he'd been beat. "Fine," he muttered.

 **Ooh, things are getting interesting!**


	4. Chapter 3

**Hey, guys! It's another chapter of this story already! xD xD xD xD**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

Perry and Doof helped the rest of their team set up the tents that were packed in the trunk of the rocketcar, then Doof pulled out a random bucket of green paint.

"Um... Doof... What's that for?" Perry inquired hesitantly.

"Well, if I'm going to pretend to be sick, I need to look the part!"

Perry sighed and rubbed the bridge of his beak. "Heinz, only people in cartoons have the cartoonishly bright green faces when they're sick."

"Oh.."

"Just act the part," Perry finished. "Okay?"

"Got it."

They walked to the hospital, Doof making spy theme song noises. Perry sighed again. "Okay," he finally said, "please stop and start acting sick."

Heinz cleared his throat, then began coughing violently. Perry, meanwhile, took his hat off, got down on all fours, and unfocused his eyes- luckily, Heinz had finally learned to recognize Perry without his hat. The former "evil" scientist walked through the front doors of the hospital, coughing and moaning, Perry padding at his heels.

A woman Perry didn't recognize was at the front desk. She raised her eyebrows as Heinz walked over. "Can I help you?"

Doof moaned and leaned against the desk. "I'm sick!" He coughed again.

The woman looked at him over her glasses. "You have a cold. You'll survive."

"Actually, without your help, I won't. Because it's not a cold!"

"Then what is it?"

Heinz hesitated, barely remembering to continue appearing sick. "It's a fatal disease that disguises itself as a cold. It's called... Deceptalilitis!" Doof burst into fake tears. "None of its victims have survived so far... I need your help! I need it..." Heinz collapsed to the floor with the latter sentences, mocking a sob.

Perry shook his head. Although Doof was way too over-dramatic, he had to give his ex-nemesis props for improvisation. Perry wouldn't have thought of something like that.

The woman appeared untouched. "Alright, I'll set up a room."

"Oh," Heinz gasped, standing back up, "thank you! Thank you."

She called in another member of staff- _also a female_ , Perry noted. _Might mean something._ The second woman wasn't just anyone, Perry realized after a moment of staring at her. She was "Ms. Purneshouce".

"Ms. Purneshouce" looked Doof and Perry up and down. "Is that a platypus?"

"Yes," Heinz coughed. "He's my...pet... Steven."

"Well, he can quit the mindless act."

"Excuse me?"

"Ms. Purneshouce" grinned. "We have a platypus here as part of our staff, and we're well aware that she's not mindless."

Perry hesitantly unfocused his eyes and stood on two feet.

"Oh, and we have translators, too." "Ms. Purneshouce" pointed to the metal device in her ear. "Now, let me take you to your room."

As they walked, Perry realized there was only female staff that he was seeing in the hallways. _Well, something's obviously going on._

After Doof and Perry were taken to their room, they were left in silence. "Well," Perry commented, "I could say a word or two about their service here."

"I said I had a fatal disease, and they barely paid attention!" Heinz whined. "It's a good thing I wasn't really sick."

"No kidding," Perry muttered. "Anyway, what did she mean that they had a platypus working here?"

"'She's not even a "she", she's an "it"'," Doof quoted. "Maybe that woman meant her."

"Maybe..."

 **(...)**

A "nurse" had stopped by and told Doof he'd be getting his medicine soon enough.

Perry blinked after she left. "I wasn't thinking about that... The medicine that really would help you if you were sick could kill you if you're not..."

Doof shrugged. "We could fake that I took them."

The "nurse" was right. About fifteen minutes later, someone came in- someone short. Someone really short... With brown fur. Perry's eyes widened. This was the platypus!

She had brown fur- chocolate brown fur. She looked so much like Fiona. Just thinking of her name caused Perry to picture Fiona in his mind. And, he realized with a start, the only physical difference between this platypus and Fiona was the eyes. Fiona had pale red eyes- this platypus had chocolate brown eyes, as well as fur.

The little brown-furred platypus was carrying a tray that had medicine on it. "Here you go, sir," she said softly, placing some of the medicine on a table by the bed Doof was lying in.

"Thank you."

The platypus smiled a, "You're welcome," then turned and nearly bumped into Perry. She dropped the tray and the medicine on it on the floor. Luckily, none of them broke. "Oh, my gosh! I'm so sorry, sir!" She bent down and began picking the medicines up.

"It's fine," Perry smiled. "Here, let me help you." He bent down to his knees and began helping.

"Thank you," she thanked quietly. Perry realized that she was only a child. _"First of all, ma'am,"_ he recalled, _"she's five years old."_

"So what's your name?" Perry inquired.

"I'm Grace," answered the platypus hesitantly.

Perry inhaled sharply. Grace. That name affected him almost as much as "Fiona".

"Grace," he finally managed to say. "That's a beautiful name."

Grace smiled. "Thank you, sir."

Suddenly Perry heard a voice calling harshly down the hallway. "Grace! Get down here!" It sounded like "Ms. Purneshouce".

The little platypus hesitated, looking over in the direction the voice came from. "I'm sorry, I have to go." She grabbed the tray and rushed out the room.

After she was gone, Perry shook his head in an attempt to clear it.

Doofenshmirtz must have noticed his reaction to hearing Grace's name. "Perry the platypus, is there something you didn't tell her?"

"It's something she didn't need to know about."

"Why did you pause after she said her name was 'Grace'?"

"You don't need to worry about it."

Doof crossed his arms. "Well, I am."

Perry crossed his arms as well. He glared at Heinz's begging gaze for several minutes before sighing, realizing Doof would keep nagging until Perry explained everything. "Alright, you might as well know. I used to have a mate."

Heinz's eyes widened at that. "Her name was Fiona. Major Monogram found out about us and gave me a choice. Either O.W.C.A. or her. Fiona found out and assumed I'd pick O.W.C.A, so she left."

"Wow..." Doof blinked. "I'm so sorry, Perry the platypus. What would you have chosen?"

Perry sighed again. "I have no idea."

"How long ago was that?"

"Five years."

"Wow," Doof said again. "But you didn't answer my original question. What does 'Grace' have to do with that?"

"Well..." Perry hesitated. If he was going to tell his ex-nemesis part of the story, he might as well tell the whole story. "When Fiona left...she was pregnant." Heinz's shocked expression grew.

"Before we even knew that Major Monogram knew about us, we were talking about names. We decided that is we had a girl, we'd name her Grace. When Grace told me what her name was, it just brought back all the pain."

"You're a father?!" That seemed to be all Doof had processed.

Perry sighed and shook his head. "Not really. That's one of the reasons it hurt so much to lose Fiona. I also lost our child."

 **Poor Perry : ( : (**

 **Anyway, who is this mysterious Grace? Find out next chapter ;P**


	5. Chapter 4

**Ok, long, complicated ANs for this one.**

 _ **PLEASE READ:**_ **A song appears this chapter that I recommend looking up on YouTube or Spotify or Pandora or somewhere because it is REALLY cool to read through the part with the song while hearing the song playing in this chapter (trust me, I've done it, like, three times since I wrote it yesterday afternoon xD xD xD xD). The song that plays is Let Me Down, by Kelly Clarkson. It's from her album Stronger, in case that helps you look it up.**

 **So, yeah, anyway, I recommend looking it up now and having it ready to play for the chapter. The line I suggest you begin playing the song at is,** _ **"The lights dimmed until the stage was pitch black. Pretty soon, the music started."**_

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB OR LET ME DOWN. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

 **Oh, and the back-singing in the song is in bold. You can't miss it! ;P ;P**

The next morning, Grace came again. And she was singing while she worked.

Perry listened to her shockingly beautiful voice for a little. He had heard the song before, but he just couldn't pin it. Until it hit him hard.

The song Grace was singing was a song Perry had only heard one other person sing; the songwriter/ original singer. And she was none other than Fiona.

 _Perry followed Pinky into O.W.C.A's auditorium, which was packed with O.W.C.A. agents. There were balloons in the air, and a few tables were lined up together with snacks and drinks on them. They were there for O.W.C.A's annual Summer Has Begun party._

 _"I've never been to this before," Perry said to Pinky. "What's it like?"_

 _Pinky grinned. "Well, it's basically just a talk-and-eat party with music playing. Oh, and there's dancing, too."_

 _Perry cocked his head. "Like... Music from the radio?"_

 _The chihuahua shook his head. "Actual agents can go up onto the stage and sing either their own songs or karaoke. Sometimes, Major Monogram invites people who aren't part of O.W.C.A. but are really talented and write their own songs- yet are hardly known about- to sing a few of their's. You know, for more popularity in the music world."_

 _"Ah."_

 _"Like this time," Pinky continued. "Major Monogram invited someone called Fiona. He says she's very talented but doesn't even have an album or anything because she can't get a contract. She works all the instruments for her songs herself, and the only thing she uses to record is like one of those recording apps that you get with an IPhone or something. I hear her song's the opening to the music."_

 _Perry chuckled and just listened to his friend chatter away. "It's too bad no one in your team could make it," Pinky commented eventually._

 _"Yeah. Harry and Maggie were called on missions, Doof's doing his own thing, and I think Karen and Ellie are visiting their families."_

 _"Host or blood?" Pinky inquired._

 _Perry just shrugged._

 _Major Monogram walked onto the stage, a microphone in his hand. "Welcome, agents, to the Summer Has Begun party!"_

 _Pinky grabbed his friend's paw and dragged him to near the front of the stage. "Come on, this way we get the best view!"_

 _The platypus stopped really paying attention to what his Major was saying until near the end. "And now, please welcome Fiona, and her song, Let Me Down!"_

 _O.W.C.A's agents all clapped as Major Monogram walked offstage. The lights dimmed until the stage was pitch black. Pretty soon, the music started._

 _"Ooh, it's all techno!" Pinky grinned. Perry smiled and rolled his eyes._

 _Then came the female voice._ "I think I might be a fortune teller. I read your face just like a letter. The funny thing about forever is it comes with a side of never, never."

 _Perry squinted, but he couldn't see anyone in the darkness._

"I can't buy into what you're selling. And, no, it's not that I don't want it. Believe me, I love to close my eyes, enjoy the ride, but you wreak of indecision, and I..."

 **"I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know,"** _sang some other voices._

 _Suddenly, the spotlights came on and showed a brown, female platypus with pale red eyes on the stage. She was holding a microphone and grinning. Pinky smirked and nudged Perry, who just rolled his eyes._

 _"_ You're only gonna let me down, when it counts to countdown!" _"Fiona" sang._ "You're only gonna turn me out; as I burn, you'll burn out! You're only gonna make me feel so crazy. Right when I think we could be something, you go and let me down, let me down. Oh."

 _Perry and Pinky clapped._ "I am too smart to let you in here, but I'm just dumb enough to linger. I wanna think that you'll be different. Smoking mirrors are so clever, clever.

"I picked him and things went so bad- then what you say will actually happen. I've been dying to open my eyes, see you try instead of always leaving me out to dry."

 **"I know, I know."** _Perry realized that those were pre-recorded voices playing._

"You're only gonna let me down, when it counts to countdown! You're only gonna turn me out; as I burn, you'll burn out! You're only gonna make me feel so crazy. Right when I think we could be something, you go and let me down, let me down. Oh."

 _"She's got a strong voice," Pinky commented, leaning closer to his friend so Perry could hear. "I wonder if it stays that way."_

 **"I need,"** _came the pre-recorded voice._

"I need you to be there when you say you're gonna be," _"Fiona" finished._

 **"I care!"** _There was the recording again._

"I care too much, and you care enough to leave."

 **"I want!"**

"I want someplace to rest my head without worrying. It's not fair."

 **"It's not fair."** _Now the recording sounded more like chorus singers._

"It's not fair!"

 **"It's not fair."**

"It's not fair to me! 'Cause I know, I know!" _Everyone clapped at that. Hard._

 _"Forgot what I said about the strong voice, she has a powerful voice!" Pinky said, clapping._

 _"_ You're only gonna let me down, when it counts to countdown!" " _Fiona" sang._

 _Her recorded voice layered that._ **"Let me down!"**

"You're only gonna turn me out; as I burn you'll burn out! You're only gonna make me feel so crazy."

 **"You're only gonna turn me out!"** _There was her recording again._ **"You're only gonna make me feel so crazy!"**

"Right when I think we could be something-" " _Fiona" began._

 **"We could be something,"** _her recording sang over her._

"-you go and let me down, let me down!"

 **"Let me down!"**

"You're only gonna let me down, when it counts to countdown! You're only gonna turn me out; as I burn, you'll burn out! You're only gonna make me feel so crazy. Right when I think we could be something, you go and let me down, let me down! Oh!" " _Fiona" finished with a grin._

 _Everyone cheered and clapped as the music came to an end. Perry didn't know about anyone else, but he was clapping so hard his paws hurt. She was much better than he had expected._

 _"Thank you!" "Fiona" called, beaming. She placed the microphone back in its spot and walked down the stairs._

 _That was a bit of a mistake. She had barely stepped off the last stair when almost everyone crowded around her, asking so many questions that she couldn't answer any._

 _Perry could see she was beginning to get stressed out, so he came over. An agent had gone onto the stage and begun singing something, so Perry, after squeezing through the crowd, held his paw out to "Fiona". "May I have this dance?"_

 _"Yes!" "Fiona" said enthusiastically, taking his paw._

 _Once they were away from the crowd, "Fiona" smiled at him gratefully. "Thanks for rescuing me from them."_

 _"No problem," Perry grinned. "That was a beautiful song."_

 _"Fiona" blushed. "Thank you." She paused, then said, "I'm Fiona."_

 _"I'm Perry."_

Perry blinked back a couple tears at the memory, then turned back to Grace. How did she know that song? Fiona never became an official singer. She never had any songs released, her songs never made the radio. She never even posted a video on YouTube! No public really ever heard her song- which was sad, that's what she wanted.

"Where'd you hear that song?" Perry finally asked.

Grace hesitated. "Well, I... I just remembered! I need to go clean Ms. Purneshouce's office!" She ran out the room.

Doof exchanged a confused glance with Perry. "What was that about?"

Perry just shrugged.

 **(...)**

Neither Perry nor Heinz saw Grace the rest of the day. But she came back the next morning.

When she did, Perry grabbed her paws and looked her in the eye. "Grace, I need to talk to you."

Grace hesitated, then sighed. "Of course, sir." She glanced over her shoulder nervously. "I just don't know how much time I have."

Perry blinked in confusion, then gently led the child over to the seats. "Grace," he asked softly, "how old are you?"

The little platypus hesitated. "Five, sir."

 _Wow_ , Perry thought. _Five years. How ironic is that?_ "How come I haven't seen your parents?"

Grace hesitated again. "Well, I never met my father. Mom said that she and Dad were separated before I hatched."

"And your mother?"

The little platypus stayed silent.

"Grace..." Perry tried a question again. "Where did you learn that song you sang yesterday?"

"My mom taught me."

 _B-but that's impossible!_ Unless Grace was the child of an agent at O.W.C.A. who was at the party five years ago. _Or..._ Perry shook his head in an attempt to clear it. _No. No, that's not it... Right?_ Perry suddenly realized he didn't know for sure. _It would make sense..._

"What was your mother's name?"

"Fiona, sir."

Perry inhaled sharply. "I used to have a mate..." he began. "Her name was Fiona. After a couple weeks, we were forced to separate, and I never saw her again. But when she left... She was pregnant."

Grace seemed a little uncomfortable with finding out this about her boss' guest/patient. "And, sir, if you don't mind my asking, how long ago was that?"

"Five years."

The brown-furred little platypus seemed taken aback. "So, Perry the platypus," Doof called from his bed, a fake cough in between his words, "wouldn't that mean your child's five years old now?"

"If he or she is even alive."

Grace blinked, seeming to realize something. "Your name is Perry?" she asked quietly.

Perry nodded. "Why?"

"My mom said that was Dad's name."

The final piece fell into place. _Oh, my gosh! Is it really true? Is Grace...my daughter?_ Perry realized with a start that Grace's chocolate-brown eyes matched Perry's own, and her fur matched Fiona's. She looked like the perfect mixture of Fiona and Perry.

Grace and Perry seemed to come to the same conclusion at the same time. "D-Dad?"

Perry smiled. "I-I think so."

 **I know, I know (I know, I know, I know, I know… You're only gonna let me down… lol, jk xD xD) , we just met Grace in the chapter beforehand. But, trust me, this way it works out best for the story. Besides, poor Perry's been through enough that he deserves to find his daughter soon, right?**

 **Anyway, the Let Me Down business. Basically, I pretend that Fiona has Kelly Clarkson's singing voice, but not the same speaking voice. So any songs that appear in this story are most likely by Kelly Clarkson. I'm not 100% sure on the lyrics, but I feel fairly confident (except with the second verse…) And if you listened to the song and didn't like it, I apologize, even if I don't understand your taste in music (xD xD). It's personally one of my favorite songs by her (#5 on my top ten xD xD)**


	6. Chapter 5

**This is a bit of a heartbreaking chapter…..**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

 **(Perry's POV)**

"You have my eyes," Perry murmured. The last thing he had expected when he woke up was that he'd become a father. But here he was.

It took a few minutes for the knowledge that Grace was Perry's daughter to sink in completely, but when it did, another thought struck him, too. A thought that got him so excited he practically leapt out of the chair. _If Grace's here, Fiona must be here, too!_

"Where's your mother?" Perry asked, grinning.

 **(Grace's POV)**

Grace's smile from finding her father vanished, and she looked to the ground, unable to meet his eyes.

Perry raised an eyebrow in confusion, his smile slowly disappearing. "What?"

The little platypus inhaled deeply. Grace didn't want to settle on the blunt truth, so if she was going to answer him, then she needed to tell the whole story.

 **(Perry's POV)**

"I live here at the hospital, now, but for the first few months of my life," Grace began slowly, "Mom and I lived in a treehouse in the Tri-State Forest."

Perry sighed at that. _I was so close to them that whole time!_

"When I was three months old, just beginning to eat solid food, there was a fire." Grace inhaled again, and she let out a shuddery breath, as if to keep herself from crying. "Mom...Mom didn't make it."

 _What?! Fiona's dead?! That...That can't be the case!_ "Are- are you sure?" Perry asked desperately. "M-maybe she survived."

Grace shook her head. "I found her body." She shuddered at the memory. "Sir- Dad," she corrected herself, "Mom's dead. She's been dead f-for nearly five years now."

Perry's world crumbled in front of him, just like when he lost Fiona the first time. He lost his balance and flopped back onto the chair, gripping the chair's arms tightly. "Fiona really is dead?"

Grace nodded, her eyes glistening. "After I buried her the best I could, I dug through the ashes of the tree and our house, salvaging the few things I could. Then I started walking. After a few days, I came across this hospital. They gave me a home and food, and, in return, I work for them."

Perry slammed his paw on the chair's arm in frustration. "If only I had known! I could've helped!"

"But it's been okay," Grace protested hesitantly. She was hiding something.

Her father was hiding something, too. Perry was angry and frustrated, but he was mostly showing that just to cover up his pain. _Fiona...Fiona's dead..._ The last thing Perry wanted was to cry in front of his daughter. He had to stay strong in front of her.

He was actually sort of relieved when Grace left because trying to hold back tears was getting more and more painful and difficult.

As soon as Grace was gone, Perry curled up on the chair, his back turned to Doof, and sobbed. In fact, Perry cried himself to sleep. _Fiona's dead._

 **(...)**

When Perry woke up again, it was late in the afternoon. He had apparently missed lunch. "Grace brought it in," Doof explained.

Perry raised an eyebrow at that. It seemed like Grace was doing practically all the work. And, no, that was not something Perry had realized because she was his daughter. Perry had noticed it before that. _But why are they placing all the work on a five year-old?_

The platypus jumped onto the windowsill, realizing with a start it was wide enough to stand, sit, or lay on. _Probably so Grace can clean the window,_ he thought bitterly.

It was amazing that Perry managed to think of anything other than Fiona right then. _Fiona's dead. Fiona's dead._ It was like when Perry had to remind himself every morning that Fiona was gone. Just ten times worse because Perry had always held onto the little hope that he might run into Fiona someday. Now even that little flicker of light had diminished into nothingness.

Perry closed his eyes when he felt tears threaten. They dripped down his cheeks, though not as quickly as before. He did have his daughter now, but all he could think about was how he'd never see Fiona again. He'd never feel her soft fur again or hear her voice again- only in his dreams, which weren't even real.

Someone other than Grace brought dinner in, but Perry didn't feel up to eating anything. He heard Doof's silverware clanking around on the plate but didn't even bother to look. Then he heard a hesitant, "Perry the platypus? How are you doing?"

The platypus didn't reply, but he did look over at Doof. Heinz must have gleaned Perry's thoughts from his expression because Doof tried a different question. "Why didn't I ever meet Fiona?"

"We didn't really want many people in O.W.C.A. to find out about our relationship- because we didn't know how Major Monogram would react- so we tried to keep it a secret from most of O.W.C.A." Perry laughed bitterly. "Apparently, we should have tried harder."

"I really am sorry, Perry the platypus," Heinz said softly. "But at least you have your daughter, right?"

Perry smiled. Barely, but it was a smile. "Yeah, I guess."

"I have Vanessa, so I could give some tips, if you want."

"No offense, but I think I'll be okay without your father tips."

Doof chuckled a bit. "I guess you're right."

A thought suddenly hit Perry for the hundredth time since that morning. _Fiona's dead. I'm never gonna see her again._ Perry winced as if it were a physical slap.

He suddenly wished he was a little platypus curled up in his mother's fur again. But not even that was possible because his parents were dead, as well as Fiona.

Perry suddenly realized there was someone he could curl up with right now. He lifted his head off his paws and looked back over at Doof. The ex-"evil" scientist seemed to understand because he smiled and waved Perry over to the bed with his head.

The platypus hesitated before leaping off the windowsill and onto Heinz's bed, laying down next to Doof. His head rested on his paws again.

"This must be so hard for you," his ex-nemesis murmured.

"You have no idea."

 **(Doof's POV)**

Heinz hesitated a couple times before nervously stroking Perry the platypus' back. Perry the platypus jumped a little bit in surprise, but settled back down quickly.

After about ten minutes of silence, Doof realized that Perry the platypus had fallen asleep again. But this time Perry the platypus hadn't cried himself to sleep. _And,_ Heinz noticed, _there's a tiny smile on Perry the platypus' face._

 **Well, now you know what happened to Fiona :'( :'(**

 **But did the awesome friendship moment help dry anyone's tears?**


	7. Chapter 6

**I am updating again! It feels like it's been forever, even though I know it hasn't….. xD**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

 **(Perry's POV)**

It was already another day when Perry woke up. Doof was still asleep.

 _I need to look around_ , Perry realized. He had been so caught up with Grace and Fiona he had forgotten to spy.

Perry silently crept down to the first floor- he knew he'd be questioned if he was spotted. When he reached the kitchen, he spotted a familiar face and grinned.

He was considering stepping out of his hiding spot to greet Grace when he heard a voice. "You've delivered the food to all the rooms?"

"Yes, ma'am," Grace replied timidly. "All except room C23."

 _C23... That's our room,_ Perry realized. _The "C" must stand for the third level, and we're the twenty-third room on the floor. Apparently._

"Why haven't you delivered there yet?" The female voice asked roughly.

"Ma'am... You're- you're still cooking the food for that room..." _Oh, so she must be the chef._

"Are you telling me I'm not doing my job?" came the surprisingly gruff voice of the chef.

"N-N-no, ma'am."

"Good." The chef sounded pleased. "Here's your breakfast."

Perry heard the clatter of a dish of some kind and looked into the kitchen again. There was a small saucer in front of Grace now. Perry had to squint to see what was in it. _Two pieces of bread?!_

Perry's eyes narrowed again, but this time from anger. And, no, he wasn't angry just because Grace was his daughter; he would've been angry if the person in her place had been a total stranger.

He heard footsteps and pressed himself up as tight against the wall as he could go. "Ms. Purneshouce" stormed by him and into the kitchen. Perry went unnoticed. "Grace, I told you to clean my office this morning!"

Perry raised an eyebrow in confusion at that. Grace had cleaned her office only a couple days before.

Apparently, his daughter was of the same mindset. "B-But, m-m-ma'am, I-I-I just cleaned it the other day."

"And I told you to clean it again!"

Perry watched the next couple minutes in what felt like slow motion. Grace timidly protested one last time, and "Ms. Purneshouce" bent down and...and slapped Grace. Hard. "Maybe that will teach you a lesson! Now, get to it!"

The onlooking platypus growled angrily as Grace's eyes watered the tiniest bit. "Yes, ma'am."

Grace began walking to the door, rubbing her cheek and stifling a sob. As soon as she reached the doorway, Perry whispered her name. "Grace."

His daughter looked to her right and saw Perry standing almost directly next to the doorway. "D-Dad?"

She casually walked over so the chef and "Ms. Purneshouce", who were probably watching from the kitchen, wouldn't get suspicious.

Perry grabbed her paws and looked her in the eye. He now saw a red mark on her cheek-which meant it was a very bright red if it was visible through her brown fur. Perry bit back his anger and murmured, "Grace, I need to talk to you. Where's the most private spot on this floor?"

Grace hesitated, her eyes glassy. "Follow me," she murmured after a minute of thought.

They eventually reached a door, and Grace opened it. "Sometimes I think I'm the only one who knows about this closet."

When they stepped in, dust seemed to fly up, and Perry coughed, not expecting that. "No kidding."

Grace giggled the tiniest bit and closed the door behind her. "No one will find us in here as long as we talk quietly. What is it?"

Perry sat down, and Grace sat down next to him. "Grace... There's something I need to tell you. It's the real reason why I'm here." Perry hesitated. He didn't casually throw this sort of thing around, but Grace was his daughter, and she had been through a lot. She deserved to know. "You may not believe this... But I'm a secret agent."

"Really?" Grace's eyes widened. "Cool!" Perry shushed her, and Grace quieted. "But why are you here?"

"Grace, my agency spotted strange things going on here and sent me and my team to check it out. Doof isn't actually sick."

"It DID seem like he was faking it," Grace murmured.

Perry groaned and rubbed the bridge of his beak. "Is it that obvious?"

"Not to anyone else here," Grace reassured. "After I joined, I studied up a bit on diseases and stuff."

"Wouldn't everyone here have studied medicine full time?"

Grace shook her head slowly. "You're here to figure out what's going on?" Perry nodded, and his daughter hesitated, inhaling deeply. "Alright. I can tell you some things. I don't think anyone here has actually studied medicine or anything. You notice how Ms. Purneshouce is called, 'Ms. Purneshouce' and not, 'Dr. Purneshouce'?"

Perry blinked. "I didn't even notice that."

His daughter inhaled again. "Yeah. I didn't at first myself. But I think this was all her idea. A couple days ago, when I last cleaned her office, I dug into her files. I think this might have all been a plan to get money. She found this abandoned hospital building and hired the random passers by as staff." Grace paused. "All females. Even me."

"Well," Perry grinned a little, "it's obvious which gender she favors."

"Have you noticed that this hospital charges more than anywhere else?" Grace inquired suddenly.

Perry blinked. "Now that you mention it... Yeah." Another thought sank into his head. "Wait... So no one here was medically trained?!"

Grace shook her head. "I've never seen a certificate or anything here. In five years."

"How many people have come here not knowing that?! How many people who've come here have..." Perry inhaled. "H-have died?"

His daughter shivered, and Perry could tell that it had been more than enough. If nothing else, too many deaths for a young child to see.

"Not only is THAT illegal," Perry muttered, "but so is child abuse."

Grace blinked in shock, and Perry let out the anger he had been holding back since he saw his daughter slapped. "Grace! You said that everything had been okay since you joined!" He KNEW that she had been hiding something!

Perry heard a voice in the distance and composed himself. "Grace. I'm your FATHER. Why didn't you tell me?"

"It's not that big a deal. Really-"

"Because it's happened so much to you in the past years," Perry finished, slightly exasperated. "Grace, this is important! You shouldn't be dealing with this, it's illegal."

"Really?"

"Yes," Perry sighed. "Really."

"Well..." Grace obviously didn't know how to respond.

But Perry did. "I'm going to let my boss know what's going on here, and we're gonna get Purneshouce arrested." He grinned. "And you can come back home with me."

Grace beamed. "So you're busting me out?"

"I'm busting you out," Perry chuckled. "In a day or so. Can you last until then?"

"I've lasted five years," the brown platypus replied matter-of-factly. "I think I can wait a couple more days."

Perry hugged his little girl. "Now that your mother's gone, we have to stick together," he murmured. He kissed Grace's forehead. "Now, we'd better get back, or people will start wondering where we are."

 **(...)**

Luckily, Perry managed to sneak back to his room unnoticed. "Anything happen while I was away?"

Doof shook his head. "Nope."

"Okay, well, I found out some things. I'm going to call in with Major Monogram and explain everything."

"Do you need to let the team know first?" Doof asked curiously.

"It is a good idea," Perry agreed reluctantly. "And I should probably call in to Major Monogram with the others. The problem is I can't do that with both you and them."

Doof shrugged. "Perry the platypus, I can wait here. Just tell me what's going on first." So Perry told him.

After that, the platypus managed to figure out how to open the window. _Good thing our room's on the third floor._ Perry quietly climbed out the window and down the ledges, leaping off when he reached the final one.

The tents were camouflaged, and, luckily, they blent right in with the surroundings. Perry had to get close to even see them, but the same was not apparently with him because he heard a little shout, "It's Perry!"

Within seconds after he had reached the tents, he was swarmed by his teammates like a celebrity with reporters. "What's going on?"

"Is there a problem?"

"Why isn't Doof with you?"

"Did you miss Elizabeth?"

Perry sighed. That last voice had come from Harry's slightly smug face.

Ellie, who had come up to Perry as well as the others, rolled her eyes. Perry heard a growl before realizing it was his own. Fiona was dead, and Harry was still teasing him about "him and Elizabeth".

 _Deep breaths,_ Perry told himself. _Harry doesn't even know who Fiona is- was._

When Perry didn't reply, Harry burst into laughter. The platypus had to inhale deeply to keep himself from strangling the purple hyena.

Ellie rolled her eyes again at the figure of Harry clutching his stomach and rolling on the ground, laughing all the while. "So what's going on in the hospital?"

Perry cleared his throat to get Harry's attention. Luckily, it worked. After everyone was calm, Perry began explaining everything- leaving out only who Grace was.

"You gonna call the Major?" Maggie asked.

"Yes, I just figured you had better know first." Perry turned his watch on, then rolled his eyes when everyone else scrambled into the picture.

It wasn't that long before Major Monogram picked up. "Ah, Agent P. How's the mission?"

Perry explained everything again. When he reached the part about Grace being abused, Harry spoke up. "They probably only see it as animal abuse."

"It's both," Perry retorted. "That makes it twice as bad."

"Well..." Major Monogram mused, "neither of those are really on a super-villain scale... I think you and your team can return to HQ and let the police handle this one."

"Sir, what about the child?" Perry asked. "Should we take her with us?"

"No need. The police can handle her as well. Drop her off at an animal adoption center, no doubt."

Perry tried again. "Sir, she's my daughter." He heard several shocked gasps and murmurs but kept his eyes fixed on the screen.

Major Monogram's eyes had augmented to twice their normal size. "W-well," he began with a little bit of a stutter. "I suppose in that case, you can bring her with you. As long as there's room, of course."

"Of course, sir." Perry was now grateful for the extra seat in the rocketcar.

"Good luck, agents." The screen went black.

Harry crossed his arms. "Okay, what was that about? Last time we saw you, you didn't even have a mate. Now you have a kid?"

Perry sighed. If Heinz knew, the rest of the team might as well know, too. "Okay, come on." He gestured for them to follow him into a tent.

Once everyone was sitting on the tent's floor, Perry began explaining. "Five years ago, I went to O.W.C.A's Summer Has Begun party."

"Oh, I remember that!" Karen said. "That's the one none of us managed to make it to."

"That's where I met another platypus. Her name was Fiona."

"Whoa, whoa!" Harry held his paws up. "But you're O.W.C.A's only platypus agent in the American division, possibly all of O.W.C.A!"

"I know. Fiona had been invited by Major Monogram to sing at the party."

"So she was a singer," said Ellie.

"Figures," Karen muttered, crossing her arms.

Perry raised an eyebrow at that but continued the story. Or, at least, tried to. "We-"

"Fell in love," finished Harry with a smirk. "Yeah, we've all heard stories like this before."

"Where is Fiona now, then?" Ellie shot back, defending Perry.

Harry opened his mouth to reply, but he couldn't.

Elizabeth smirked and turned back to Perry. "Could you please continue the story?"

Perry sighed. "It was about a month later that Major Monogram found out, and he didn't like it."

"What didn't he like about it?" Maggie inquired.

"I don't know," Perry admitted. "But he didn't like me being in a relationship. So he gave me a choice between Fiona or my host family."

Everyone inhaled sharply. They all knew how Perry felt about the Flynn-Fletchers- well, all except Doof. That's why Perry had referred to O.W.C.A. with Heinz instead.

"And you chose the Flynn-Fletchers?" Ellie asked quietly.

Perry shook his head. "I didn't choose anything. Fiona heard me get the choice, assumed I'd pick the Flynn-Fletchers, and left."

Karen and Elizabeth both placed their paws to their mouths, and Maggie just stared.

Even Harry stayed quiet. But that didn't last long. "Wow. But how does that explain how Grace is your daughter?"

"Fiona was pregnant when she left." Four shocked gasps came not that many seconds later. "Yesterday morning was when I pieced out who Grace was."

"Well, where's Fiona now?" Karen inquired.

"She's dead!" Perry retorted a little- okay, a lot- more sharply than intended.

"What?!"

Perry inhaled deeply. "A-apparently, a few months after Grace hatched, t-there was a fire. Fiona... She didn't make it."

The platypus heard several sympathetic murmurs, and following was another silence, this one longer than the last one. Perry's head was bent down to his lap, and his eyes were closed. Tears silently ran down his cheeks.

Someone apparently noticed because one person began to quietly usher the others out. Eventually, it was only Perry and the other agent in the tent.

He felt a paw on his shoulder. "I'm really sorry." It was Ellie. That was only three- well, technically, four- words, but it was filled with sincerity.

There was a few more moments of silence before Elizabeth left the tent also, giving Perry more privacy.

 **Ok, I don't feel like this chapter's all that heartbreaking…. More frustrating because I keep doing all these horrible things to my characters…. But is it heartbreaking for you?**


	8. Chapter 7

**Ok, so another song appears in this chapter… But, unlike with Let Me Down, I won't suggest you read the scene with the song while listening to it ;) Grace sings for half of it, and, although she wants it, she doesn't have Fiona's singing voice. I still recommend you listen to the song, though! It is Standing In Front of You by Kelly Clarkson! Try not to cry reading the scene including it this chapter xD xD**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

 **(Perry's POV)**

When Perry recovered from the temporary pain, he left the tent- with a plan on how to rescue his daughter. He whistled to collect his teammates as soon as he left the tent.

They quickly crowded around him. "Yeah?"

"I've got a plan."

"On how to leave with Grace?" Karen asked.

Perry nodded. "We're going to wait a couple days so the staff don't get suspicious. That whole time, I want someone watching that window." He pointed to the third window up.

"Why?" Harry inquired.

"Doof or I will give you a signal," replied Perry. "Like so." He then made a gesture with his paw. "When you see that, it means that I'm going to go get Grace. As soon as you see that, I want you to send two agents into the building."

"Does it matter which two?" Maggie asked.

Perry shook his head. "Just send two agents; I don't care which ones."

"Do you know a good path to take to get in?" Ellie inquired.

The platypus nodded. "Just watch me when I get back to Doof. Now, the two agents who are still here. When you see the signal, I want you to contact Major Monogram. That's when he'll contact the closest police."

"Would we have time to complete the mission if we do that?" asked Harry.

"Plenty," Perry reassured. "After you contact the Major, I want you to start packing the tents. Doof'll come down and help."

"You seriously trust Heinz to escape by himself?" Karen asked incredulously.

"Doof's been part of O.W.C.A. for seven years now. We've got to trust that not even he can mess some things up now."

"Fair point."

"Any other questions?" Perry glanced around his group. The sun was setting, so he was getting anxious to get back to the hospital before any of the staff knew he left.

The team was silent. "Okay, good. I'll see you in a couple days." Perry silently crept up to the hospital again, occasionally glancing back up make sure his team was watching. They all were.

Perry climbed onto the first ledge, and from there he climbed up to his and Doof's window. He met Ellie's eyes one last time; she smiled and nodded before walking back to the tents. Stars were beginning to come out by then, so Perry crawled through the window and silently shut it.

"Dad!" came an excited shout. Perry whirled around to Grace hugging him.

He smiled. "Hey, Grace. Everything okay?"

Grace nodded. "I was about to leave."

"Well, it's a good thing you didn't, 'cause I need to talk to you." Perry gently led his daughter over to the chairs. "So, Grace, tomorrow's going to be like normal. I just want you to make sure you come here this time tomorrow because that's the night before we leave. The night before we bust you out of this prison that's called a hospital."

"I'm leaving in two days?!" asked Grace excitedly.

Perry grinned. "Yep. You're leaving with us."

Grace fist-pumped the air. "And I want you to pack your stuff up tomorrow," Perry reminded, the grin still on his face.

"No problem. Don't have that much stuff after the fire," Grace sighed.

Perry winced. "You didn't manage to salvage much?"

"Only a few things. Wish I could have saved more."

 _Like your mother._ But, of course, Perry didn't voice that. He knew that's what his little girl meant, and if he had said it, it would have made her feel worse.

Instead, Perry hugged Grace and kissed her forehead. "You'd better go on and get going. We don't want the 'staff' to get suspicious."

"Okay! Night!" Grace ran out of the room.

Perry chuckled. _She's a lot like you were, Fiona. Thank you so much for saving our beautiful daughter._

He curled up against the chair behind him and closed his eyes, and, despite the fact that it was only late evening, sleep washed over him.

 **(Grace's POV)**

The next day was fairly normal, just like Perry said. Grace did her work during the day, and, just like her father told her, Grace made sure to get to his and Doofensmirtz's room that night. "So why'd you want me here?"

Perry grinned. "I just wanted to go over the plan for tomorrow with you."

Grace practically squealed. She was leaving the hospital tomorrow, and with her father, no less, who she thought she'd never even meet.

"I need you to try and survive most of tomorrow, too, okay? Then we're leaving tomorrow night. In the evening, I'm going to come to the kitchen with a couple of my friends and sneak you out of the hospital. My other friends will be outside waiting and ready to go.

"Do you have your stuff packed yet?"

Grace shook her head. "It's only a few things; if we're staying here most of tomorrow, then I can easily pack then."

"Alright, sweetheart, if you're sure."

 **(Perry's POV)**

The next twenty-four hours flew by, and, before Perry was expecting it, it was time to get going. "Remember the plan?" he asked Doof.

Heinz nodded. "Wait for you and two other members of the team to leave to get Grace the platypus then climb out the window and sneak to the tents."

Perry nodded. "And you'll help the two others pack up, so we can be ready to go when we get there with Grace."

"Got it, Perry the platypus." Perry grinned and crawled onto the windowsill before quietly opening it. He then stuck his paw out the window and made the signal he had showed the team.

A few minutes later, Karen and Elizabeth climbed up the ledges and into the room. Perry wasn't surprised. Maggie and Harry did everything together, so if one of them wanted to stay and pack up, then the other would, too.

"Come on, let's get going." Perry quietly crept out of the room, Ellie and Karen following. They didn't run into any staff as they snuck down to the kitchen, which was quite a relief.

The closer they got to the kitchen, a noise seemed to grow louder. "Is that...singing?" Karen asked.

Perry grinned; he easily recognized the voice. "Yes, yes, it is."

By now, they reached the kitchen, and Perry blinked. It was like a scene out of Disney's Cinderella. Grace was on her knees on the floor, cleaning it with a rag- and she was singing. Perry chuckled a bit at the similarities while Grace began a new song; the teal platypus froze immediately. He knew what song it was.

 _Of course Fiona taught that to her, too,_ Perry reminded himself. It was basically his and Fiona's song. Fiona had written it as well, and she sang it to him before he... Before he lost her.

"We can wait a few minutes," he whispered to Karen and Ellie before creeping a bit closer to Grace. He wanted to hear the song again.

 _"You say, 'It's easier, alone and undisturbed',"_ Grace sang. _"You said, 'Yes' and danced before and got your feelings hurt._

 _"You say most days you're good. 'It's not so bad, this room'. Why chance the rain today, even though it's clear and sunny?_

 _"And you fight it so hard. How to tell if it's real or not?"_

Perry could feel a few tears come into his eyes as Grace began the chorus. _"Take a breath and listen. Open up, stop wishing. All that you've been missing's standing in front of you._

 _"Everything you're fearing, all the walls you're building. Take a chance, your reason's standing in front of you. Standing in front of you."_

Grace did an amazing job singing it. So well, in fact, Perry flash-backed to Fiona singing it to him in that meadow. On one of the best days of his life.

 **(...)**

 _Perry couldn't believe what he was hearing, and he blushed a little as he heard the message in the song. The truth was that he DID have feelings for Fiona, although he was scared to admit it after having his heart broken only a year before._

"You start to sway again," _Fiona grinned,_ "feeling good in your skin. You start to remember when you didn't have to try.

"And then the glitter turns to dust. The color fades enough to make out pictures of a fire that burns like love."

 _Fiona placed her paw on Perry's cheek._ "You can close your eyes. Don't worry, I'll still be here in the morning."

 _The brown platypus grabbed Perry's paws and looked him in the eye as she sang the chorus again._ "Take a breath and listen. Open up, stop wishing. All that you've been missing's standing in front of you.

"Everything you're fearing, all the walls you're building." _Fiona began leading Perry through the flowers that had just recently bloomed in the early summer._ "Take a chance, your reason's standing in front of you. Standing in front of you."

 **(...)**

The next line brought Perry back to the present. _"And they won't break us, and they can't get through,"_ Grace sang. _"'Cause I'm gonna be here, standing in front of you!"_

Perry scoffed bitterly. That's certainly what he and Fiona had thought; but it had been less than a month later Major Monogram got in the way.

 _"Take a breath and listen. Open up, stop wishing. All that you've been missing's standing in front of you._

 _"Everything you're fearing, all the walls you're building. Take a chance, your reason's standing in front of you. Standing in front of you. Standing in front of you."_

Perry brushed away the tears that had formed in his eyes as Grace finished the song. He was about to talk to her when he heard footsteps. Perry immediately pressed himself against the wall along with Ellie and Karen as "Ms. Purneshouce" stormed in the kitchen. The three of them quietly ran from the wall to in between a couple counters.

"Grace, stop the racket!"

Grace had gotten a bit of her father's smirk, apparently. "Sorry." She was obviously glad that "Ms. Purneshouce" had no idea that this would be the last time she'd get to boss Grace around.

"Ms. Purneshouce" slapped Grace, making Perry growl. "Wipe that grin off your face right now! You're lucky I even bothered taking a homeless brat like you in! Now, get to work!"

She stormed off again, Grace rubbing her cheek. "Yeah," she muttered. "Real lucky."

Once Perry was sure "Ms. Purneshouce" was gone, he ran up to his daughter and pulled her into a hug. "Grace!"

"Dad! Is it time?"

Perry nodded. "Do you have your stuff?"

"One minute." Grace ran to one corner of the kitchen; Perry spotted her pull something out of a small bed similar to that which Phineas and Ferb gave him. She zoomed back, holding a stuffed bear. It had several different kinds of fabrics sewn together to make it, a button was missing where its "eye" should have been, and there were a few black scorch marks over it.

"I'm too old for dolls," Grace began slowly, "but Mom made it for me."

Perry raised and eyebrow and grinned. "Oh?"

"Yeah. It was made out of the fabric scraps Mom found lying around, and the black spots are from the fire."

"And the missing button?"

"It's wearing out," replied Grace sadly. "A reminder that Mom's been dead for five years."

Perry inhaled deeply. "I can't believe it," he muttered.

"Perry, are you two ready?" At Ellie's voice, both he and Grace whirled around to face the echidna and the cat.

Grace blushed, suddenly seeming embarrassed that two people- who were complete strangers to her- had heard and seen so much. "H-hi."

Ellie smiled warmly; Karen gave a smile, too, but it seemed a bit more jealous than anything else. "Hi. So you're Grace?"

Perry's little girl nodded. "Well, I'm Elizabeth, and that's Karen." Ellie turned back to Perry. "Ready?" she asked again.

Perry nodded. "Grace?"

"Let's leave this awful place behind," Grace answered bitterly.

The teal platypus grinned, grabbed his daughter's paw, and began to run out the kitchen, the three others following. They slowed down and began creeping once they were down the hallway about.

Once they reached a corner, the agents pressed themselves up against the wall, and Grace quickly copied them. Perry peeked his head around the corner. "Coast's clear," he whispered.

They quietly crept around and relaxed their way into a steady walking pace in the next hallway. Karen ran a little to catch up to Perry, and Grace fell back behind him.

He heard Ellie ask her a question. "So you're five?"

"Yeah," came Grace's meek reply.

There was silence for a little bit; Perry turned around to ask his daughter something. But Grace wasn't there. "Ellie, where's Grace?!"

Ellie whirled to her left. "S-she fell back behind me a little! I-I thought she was just behind me!"

Just then, there was a scream of a young girl. Perry's eyes widened. "Grace!" He ran in the direction of the scream, Elizabeth and Karen following.

"Ms. Purneshouce" was holding Grace, who was kicking and shouting. "Let me go!"

"You're workforce," "Ms. Purneshouce" hissed. "And I'm not letting a bunch of filthy animals take that from me!"

Perry's eyes narrowed. _Sure, she's totally not a real villain,_ he thought sarcastically before attacking her to save his daughter. Karen and Ellie quickly followed his lead.

 **(...)**

Luckily, "Ms. Purneshouce" wasn't much of a fighter; she obviously wasn't expecting three "filthy animals" to be able to take her down so easily.

Perry gripped his daughter tightly as Ellie handcuffed "Ms. Purneshouce". "You have no right to do this!" she screeched.

Ellie just smirked. "Um, well, we work for the government, I think we know our rights." With that, the echidna walked back over to the others.

"Come on," Grace said shakily, "let's get out of here."

When the four animals made it outside, the sky was midnight blue and Harry and Doof were already sitting in the car, and Maggie was resting on her perch that had been installed on the rocketcar. Grace whimpered and pressed herself a bit closer to Perry. "Hey, don't worry," he murmured. "Come on, let's get in the car."

Perry let Karen crawl into the seat between his and Doof's before sitting down himself. In the back, Grace climbed in behind her father, and Ellie sat down in between her and Harry. Perry lifted the car off the ground and directed it for O.W.C.A's HQ.

Just as the car pulled into the air, Perry heard sirens and spotted police cars pull up to the hospital. He could hear Grace mutter, "They're finally getting what they deserve."

The teal platypus grinned. _Yes, yes, they are._

 **The part with Purneshouce might've seemed a bit lame, but, well, although she's certainly an antagonist, but she is far from being the main villain of this story I:} I:} I:} I:}**


	9. Chapter 8

**Get your tissue boxes out, people xD Well, if you decide to listen to the featured song while reading. If you don't, it won't be as sad, so if that helps your decision….**

 **The song is Don't You Wanna Stay by… Yes, you guessed it xD Kelly Clarkson, and it features Jason Aldean. It's a lovely and sad song. Since the male actually doesn't sing along for most of it, you don't have to listen to the song. If you haven't heard the song before, though, I highly recommend you do, so you can better grasp the feel of the song and the moment in the story :'(**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

 **(Grace's POV)**

Grace stared at the ground far below as Perry flew the rocketcar. She was so excited that she was finally leaving the hospital, but this was awkward for her.

On Grace's right was a female echidna that she had heard Perry call "Ellie." She seemed nice, but Grace never really felt comfortable around new people- except Perry, but her dad was a different matter.

"Ellie" was sitting on the left of a purple hyena. Grace hadn't heard his name yet. He was talking with a red macaw who had her own stand connected to the car. Grace thought she heard the hyena call her "Maggie" once.

Grace was sitting behind her father. It relieved her, but she kind of wished she had been sitting next to him instead of the cat- whatever her name was. Then again, Grace wasn't sure how she'd feel squished in between Perry and- what was his name? Doofenshmirtz?

After a little bit, the hyena and "Maggie" stopped talking, and silence weaved its way among the seven people. Awkward silence.

The brown platypus sighed. _I can't handle this._ So, after summoning her courage, Grace squeaked out, "How long is the drive?"

Perry managed to turn away from the wheel long enough to shoot her a quick smile. "About fifteen more minutes."

 _Fifteen more minutes of awkward silence? I can't do this._ Grace immediately wished she had music she could listen to.

The thought reminded her of something, and she froze as her heart rate increased. _Did I forget it?!_

Grace immediately reached into her fur pocket and relaxed as she pulled out a phone. She still had it. The phone had belonged to Fiona, and it had all of her music on there. It and the stuffed bear were all Grace had been able to salvage from the fire-  
if she lost the phone, it would be like losing part of herself.

"I could play a song to pass the time," Grace said hesitantly.

 **(Perry's POV)**

Curiosity got the best of Perry, so he switched the autopilot on and turned to face his daughter. "How?"

"I-it's Mom's old phone," replied Grace quietly. "It has all her music on it." Obviously, she was struggling with six pairs of eyes resting on her.

Perry got a good look at the teal, orange, and white phone. His eyes widened. "I-" He cleared his throat and continued. "I'm the one who gave that phone to her in the first place."

Grace's eyes widened, her mouth opened a little, and she stared down at the phone in her paws. "Whoa."

The teal platypus let out a soft chuckle. "You said your mother's songs are on there?"

"All of them. Maybe I could play one?"

Perry exchanged a glance with Karen, but he was talking to everyone. "Would that be okay?"

"I'd certainly like to hear just how good a singer Fiona was," Karen muttered. Perry raised an eyebrow in confusion. Why was there a hint of hostility in her voice?

There were five choruses of agreement, though none of them were hostile. "A-alright," Grace said nervously.

Perry turned back to the wheel and turned the autopilot back off again as he heard Grace scroll through the songs. She was reading each name out loud to herself.

Some of the names Perry recognized, such as, "Let Me Down", "Standing In Front Of You", and "You Thought Wrong", but there were some that Perry hadn't heard before- that Fiona had most likely written after Perry had lost her. The names such as, "Hear  
Me", "Nostalgic", and "Cry" stuck needles into Perry's heart.

Suddenly, Grace let out a shout of excitement. "Ooh! Don't You Wanna Stay! I love that song!"

Perry winced. He knew THAT song all too well. It was the last song Fiona had written and sung before they were separated.

"Could I play it?"

The teal platypus took a deep breath in. "Okay." He scolded himself when his voice shook a bit.

"It's a male-female duet piece," explained Grace. "When Mom recorded all these songs on her phone, it was after she moved into the treehouse while she was pregnant with me. She was only able to sing her part, so the song won't sound quite right."

With that, Grace began the song. How Fiona had managed to record the instruments was beyond Perry- maybe she had recorded the instruments while they were still together.

As Grace had explained to everyone, Fiona had sung each song by herself, so where the male was supposed to begin, only instruments played. But Perry knew the song by heart.

The male began the song with the first verse: _"I really hate to let this moment go, touching your skin and your hair falling slow. When a goodbye kiss feels like this..."_

This was where Fiona's voice began singing in harmony with nothing- in the complete song, the male sang with the female. _"Don't you wanna stay here a little while? Don't you wanna hold each other tight; don't you wanna fall asleep with me tonight? Don't you wanna stay here a little while? We could make forever feel this way; don't you wanna stay?"_

Fiona sang the second verse by herself; Perry inhaled deeply and listened to her soothing singing voice. _"Let's take it slow; I don't want to move too fast. Don't wanna just make a love; I wanna make a love last. When you're up this high, it's a sad goodbye!_

 _"Don't you wanna stay here a little while? Don't you wanna hold each other tight; don't you wanna fall asleep with me tonight? Don't you wanna stay here a little while? We could make forever feel this way; don't you wanna stay?"_

 **(Grace's POV)**

Grace swayed a little as she listened to the song. She had only heard her mother sing it and had never heard the full thing, so she had never found out who Fiona sang it with.

 _"Oh, yeah!"_ her mother sang through the speaker.

The next part was just instrumental, but Grace knew what came next. The male singing, _"Oh, you feel so perfect, baby!"_

Fiona's voice came again. _"Let it feel so perfect, baby!"_

"Who sings this with her?" "Ellie" asked, leaning over. Grace didn't reply because she didn't know the answer.

When the next part came, however, Perry suddenly joined in. Singing in perfect harmony with Fiona's voice. _"Don't you wanna stay here a little while?"_

Grace blinked in surprise. Did her parents originally sing the song together?

"Ellie" had the same thoughts. "Perry sang it with her?!"

 _Apparently._

 _"Don't you wanna stay here a little while?"_ Perry continued to sing along with Fiona's voice. _"Don't you wanna hold each other tight; don't you wanna fall asleep with me tonight?"_

 **(Perry's POV)**

Perry knew that Karen knew that he was crying; and he didn't care. Tears WERE slowly dripping down his cheeks as he sang along with his mate's "ghost". _"Don't you wanna stay here a little while? We could make forever feel this way; don't you wanna stay?"_ His  
voice cracked a little.

He had been the original male singer. It had surprised Perry when Fiona handed the song to him the day after Major Monogram had placed the decision on Perry's conscience. The song had matched his current position so well that he had been able to sing  
it with a surprising amount of feeling; the only question was why Fiona had even thought to write it. But if she had secretly been watching when the Major gave him the decision, then a lot more things made sense.

The teal platypus stopped singing along again as the next part of the song came up. _"Don't you wanna stay?"_ Fiona sang.

 _"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah."_

As the instruments pulled the song to a close, Perry brushed away his tears with a paw and inhaled deeply to compose himself in front of his team and daughter.

"Sorry, Dad," Grace apologized meekly. "Did you not want me to play it?"

Perry smiled- and it wasn't forced. "Grace," he said truthfully, "I haven't heard that song in five years. Thank you."

"Really?"

"Really. I do miss your mother. I really miss her." Perry's voice cracked with that. "But listening to her music helps keep her close, no matter how painful it is. Thank you so much for playing that."

Karen hesitantly placed a paw on Perry's shoulder, and, after taking in another deep breath, Perry simply shook it off. Silence gathered again, this time more awkward than before.

After a few more minutes, Ellie spoke up. "Fiona WAS an amazing singer."

"Yeah," Perry grinned weakly. "She really was."

It was another few minutes before Perry parked the car in front of O.W.C.A's HQ. The lights on the front of the building were turned on, and Major Monogram was waiting outside with Carl, his arms behind his back.

He saluted as soon as Perry parked the car. "Good job, agents." All the agents saluted back... All except Perry. And Grace shrank down timidly in her seat.

Perry's team began to file out of the rocketcar. Perry climbed out after everyone else and helped his daughter out of the vehicle. Grace hugged him tightly, and Perry hugged her back. "Go on inside, sweetheart. Ellie will help show you around."

Grace hesitated. "O-okay." She glanced at Major Monogram and Carl before quickly walking in the building. Perry smiled and then turned to his Major, his arms crossed.

"She's your daughter?"

"Yes," Perry replied, his eyes narrowing a little.

The Major's gaze faltered. "And who is the mother?"

Perry's slightly hostile gaze turned into a full-on glare, so he turned it to the ground. Major Monogram continued slowly and quietly. "Because Fiona left five years ago."

"And whose fault is that?" Perry muttered under his breath.

"Agent P," Major Monogram repeated firmly, "who's the mother? I have every right to know what my agents have been up to."

"Fiona!" Perry snapped, turning back to him.

Major Monogram's eyes widened, and he barely tried to hide it. "But, Agent P, I said-"

"I know what you said!" Perry wasn't even bothering being respectful anymore. "And you know what? I NEVER saw Fiona again!"

The Major raised an eyebrow. "T-then... Then how did you...?"

Perry folded his arms and looked miserably at the ground again. "She was pregnant when you made me choose. After Fiona left, she had to raise our daughter by herself."

"A-A-Agent P-P..." Perry had never heard Major Monogram stutter before. "I'm so sorry. If I could-"

A new thought struck Perry, making him interrupt the Major. "You knew..." he murmured.

"What?"

Perry turned to glare up at Major Monogram again. "You knew! You knew I'd wind up staying in O.W.C.A!"

"You chose us over Fiona," stated his Major quietly.

"No," Perry scoffed. "I never ended up choosing. Fiona did. But you knew that I'd end up losing her; that's why you weren't scared to give me the decision. You KNEW you wouldn't lose me as an agent!"

Major Monogram hesitated and winced. So Perry was right! "Well," he snarled, "thanks to what you did, you didn't lose me. My mate died, and my daughter lived as an orphan for five years, but you didn't lose me. That's good enough, isn't it?"

"Agent P-"

"You depend on me to keep O.W.C.A. going! How would you survive withoutyour top agent?" Perry's eyes narrowed. "Maybe we could find out."

The Major blinked in shock. "What?"

"Thanks to O.W.C.A, I lost my mate. It doesn't make me want to stay here. Maybe I'll quit! How would you survive then?"

Before Major Monogram could reply, Perry stormed off, blinded by tears and rage. He collapsed on the ground by a bush outside of HQ, not sure whether to cry or not. So he simply sat there, his head hanging to the ground, and his eyes closed.

After several minutes, Perry felt a small pair of arms wrap around him. He glanced over to his right and saw Grace hugging him. Perry smiled and gently nuzzled her with his beak before pulling her up against him and holding her tight. Grace didn't ever  
struggle.

 **Poor Perry D: D: D:**

 **And don't imagine Perry singing in Jason Aldean's voice xD xD He does not have that deep, country voice xD xD**


	10. Chapter 9

**I am updating again! :D I am slowly regaining my motivation for my stories, one at a time xD xD xD It makes me quite happy- but don't expect another update from me for at least a couple more weeks xP xP xP**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

 **(Perry's POV)**

Grace's voice spoke up after a while. "Ellie wanted me to get you. Are you okay?"

Perry smiled and nuzzled his little girl. "I'm okay, sweetheart," he reassured. "Why did Ellie want me?"

"I don't know," admitted Grace.

"Alright, then, I'll go see." Perry slowly stood up, carefully minding Grace.

Elizabeth was waiting by herself in a room when Grace led Perry inside. Grace then, sensing that Ellie would feel awkward talking with her around, quietly left the room.

"What is it?" Perry asked curiously, turning back to his teammate after his daughter was gone.

Only a millisecond after he turned back around did he feel Ellie's lips touch his beak. After a couple seconds, Perry backed away and stared at Ellie in shock.

Ellie gasped and put her paws to her mouth. "Oh- oh my- I'M SO SORRY!" She burst into tears and raced out the room, leaving Perry behind thinking about what had just happened in the course of ten seconds.

Once he had wrapped his head around it, Perry stepped out of the room to see Grace with a concerned look on her face. "Ellie just raced out of the room and in that direction." She pointed in the area of the dorm rooms. "Is everything okay?"

Perry gave his daughter a small smile. "I just need to talk with her. You stay here."

"Okay."

Following the direction Grace had pointed out, Perry went after the echidna. He found the door to her dorm room closed. "Ellie?" He gently tapped his paw on the door. He didn't get an answer.

"Ellie?" Perry gently opened up the door to find the echidna lying on her bed, with her face on the pillow, and he heard her crying. "Ellie..."

He stepped closer to her and sat by her on her bed, gently stroking her. "Ellie..." he said again.

"I'm a horrible person," came Elizabeth's muffled and miserable voice.

"What?" Perry gasped. "No, you're not!"

"Yes, I am. You're getting over Fiona and going through all this stuff with Grace, and then I just come along and-" she burst into tears again.

Perry sighed. "Ellie, you... You're fifteen, aren't you?"

Ellis turned around to face Perry. "Yeah..."

"That explains it. Ellie, it's okay," he reassured. "Every animal goes through that age range of fourteen to sixteen. They could very well be the worst years of someone's life, depending on the person." Perry glanced at the ground. "They're especially tough if you don't meet the person who could very well become your mate."

"You were fifteen when we met, right?"

"Yeah. And you know what I went through that year."

Elizabeth chuckled. "Yeah, that must have been awful for you."

"Mm-hmm," Perry agreed. "It was. I mean, it would have been hard no matter what age, but it was even harder because I was directly in the middle of the range."

Ellie moaned as she thought about what had happened. "Still... I should be able to control myself..."

"Elizabeth... I'm not upset."

"Really?"

"Really," grinned Perry. "I'm not upset at all, and I don't blame you for what just happened."

He inhaled. "Listen, Ellie, I don't care for you in that way- and you know that. But that doesn't mean I don't care for you as more than a friend."

"Huh?" The echidna looked lost.

Perry chuckled. "You're like a little sister to me, El. And I want to help you through this."

Ellie sat up slowly. "Thanks, Perry," she smiled. Perry grinned and hugged her.

After a few minutes, Perry said bye, got up, and left the room. "Grace?"

"Yeah?" His little girl was still in the same spot she had been when Perry had first gone to the dorms.

"Are you ready to go?"

"Where?" Grace cocked her head curiously.

"Home," Perry grinned. "Does that sound good?"

"That sounds great, Dad!"

 _Dad_. It would take Perry a while before he got used to being called that. "Then let's go," he smiled warmly.

 **(...)**

"You live with humans?" Grace asked nervously.

The two of them had made it to the Flynn-Fletchers' house. "Yes..." Perry said slowly. "But not all humans are like the ones that 'took you in', Grace."

"I... I know," Grace replied shakily. "But I'm still nervous."

Perry gripped his daughter's paw. "Are you ready?"

"Y-yeah."

"Okay." Perry got onto all-fours and crawled through the pet door, carefully helping Grace through after him.

Grace looked around. "Why are we like this?"

"Just follow me," Perry instructed.

 **(Grace's POV)**

"A-alright..." Grace padded up a staircase after her father and into a large, blue bedroom. Sitting on the two beds in it were two young men- both seeming to be in their late teens. One had a triangular shaped head with red hair, and the other had a rectangular head with green hair.

The redhead boy looked up as Perry entered the room, followed by Grace. "Perry! You're back!"

Perry grinned and closed the door before standing up on two feet- Grace carefully copied his movements, unsure of what else to do. "It's great to see you two again."

"He was only on that mission for a few days, Phineas," the boy with the green hair reminded.

"I know, Ferb," Phineas sighed. "But it felt like forever. Come on, you can't tell me you didn't miss him at all either."

A small smile came into Ferb's face. "You're right."

"Anyway, who's this?" Phineas had to peek around Perry slightly to see Grace, who had crept closer and closer to her father during the conversation.

Perry hesitated. "Well, she's..." He inhaled. "Do you remember Fiona?"

"Oh, yeah..." Phineas and Ferb exchanged a sad glance.

"Well... This is Grace," Perry introduced, gently nudging his little girl out from behind him.

Ferb raised an eyebrow. "And she is...?"

"Mine and Fiona's daughter," Perry admitted.

The boys' eyes widened. Phineas glanced back and forth from Grace to Perry to Ferb and back to Grace. "Wait... But she's... Fiona... I remember... What?"

"It's a...long story that I'm still trying to wrap my head around myself," Perry continued. "But, yeah, this is my little girl." He smiled at Grace, who timidly smiled back.

"She looks a lot like her mother," Ferb commented.

"Yeah... She does."

"What are Mom and Dad gonna say?" Phineas asked.

Perry hesitated. "That's why I came to you two first."

"You need us to help?" grinned Phineas. "No problem."

"Do you know where they are?"

"Well, Dad's at work, but I think Mom's in the backyard."

"Great! Can you boys come with us?" Perry asked as he got back onto four feet, Grace quizzically copying him.

"Of course," Phineas continued to grin. "Come on, Ferb!"

The four left the room and walked down the stairs. Grace would have been completely lost if she hadn't been guided by her dad and the two boys they were with. The group stepped outside, where a woman with red hair was working on a flower patch.

Perry padded over to her on four feet and nuzzled her leg before mindlessly padding away a little. This caused the woman to take off her headphones, and she smiled at the platypus. "Hello, Perry. It's been a while since I've seen you."

The woman turned back to the other three. "Oh! Boys! I was just... Wait..." She cocked her head with a smile. "Who's this?" The woman reached forward to pet Grace, who flinched away nervously. Her eyes flicked to Perry, who gave her a reassuring smile.

"Mom, can we keep her?" Phineas asked hopefully.

"Why?"

"Well..." Phineas and Ferb exchanged a glance. "We think she's Perry's daughter."

"Hmm..." The woman cocked her head. "I guess that would make sense."

"Doesn't she look like the other platypus who used to live here?" Phineas pushed.

"You're right," the woman agreed. "And even if they might not be related, they do look close... I'd hate to separate them... Of course we can keep her! Boys, what do you want to name her?"

Grace shot her dad a nervous look. _Oh, please,_ please _don't give me a different name._

But they didn't. "How about Grace?" Phineas suggested, exchanging a glance with Ferb.

The woman smiled. "Perfect." She turned to Grace. "It's nice to meet you, Grace. I'm Linda."

Perry shot Grace a grin. "Welcome home, sweetheart."

 **Welp. Things seem to be going along nicely, now, don't they? I:} I:} I:} But the story isn't done yet….**


	11. Chapter 10

**Well, this was a bit longer than I had hoped, but things will start intensifying now xD xD**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHIENAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

 **(Grace's POV)**

 _Flames crackled as Grace grabbed her stuffed bear. "Mom!" she gasped._

 _"Grace, go!" Fiona said worriedly._

 _"Mom, what about you?!"_

 _Fiona looked around as the fire spread quickly. Grace screamed as a beam from the treehouse fell in between them. "Don't worry about me!" Fiona yelled. "Get out of here! I'll be fine!"_

 _Grace turned and began to stumble out of the small house, clutching her bear. Tears- whether from the fact that her mother wasn't right there with her or the fact that the flames and ash were stinging her eyes- blinded her vision, and she tripped down the ladder and landed on the grass._

 _She raced over to the lake and wiped her eyes before turning back to the burning tree. Where was Fiona?! "HELP!" Grace screamed. "MISS PATTY?! SOMEONE!"_

 _Grace looked around wildly, hoping to catch a glimpse of someone rushing to help. But there wasn't anyone. Except... Grace once thought she saw a white shape standing behind a tree, but when she had looked again... No one was there. Grace turned back to the tree, which was covered in flames._

She let out a wail and sat up in the small pet bed. Perry shot up in the bed next to hers. "Grace?!"

Grace just sobbed, pulling her legs up to her chest. Perry got out of his bed and sat down next to her. "Sweetheart?" He pulled her close. "What is it?"

"M-M-Mom," Grace cried. "I-I-I had a-a dream a-about t-the fire... A-A-Again. I-I've b-been dreaming i-it s-s-since it h-h-happened, and i-it hasn't e-e-ever gotten b-better."

Perry hesitated and hugged her tightly. "Sounds like you got that from me..."

Grace sniffled. "W-What?"

"Grace, I told you my parents died when I was only a week old. Almost every single night the next two months afterwards, I would have a flashback to that moment." Perry sighed. "Even now... I'll still get the dream occasionally."

"O-Oh..." Grace squeezed her eyes shut. "D-Does that mean I'll n-never stop having t-this dream?! I-I can't handle t-t-that!"

"Sh..." Perry rocked her comfortingly. "Hopefully, you won't get it as often as me. Do you...want to talk about it? The dream?"

Grace sniffled. "I-It just d-doesn't m-make any sense. T-T-The fire...! W-We were in the rainy season...!"

"But then how could it have been an accident?" Perry asked in confusion. He froze. "No...!"

"D-Dad?"

 **(Perry's POV)**

Perry couldn't believe this. The forest Fiona and Grace had been living in was considered a very safe forest, one that forest fires were rare in. NO accidental fires AT ALL had started in that forest in the rainy season... Had the fire not been an accident?

"Grace," he said firmly, grabbing his daughter's paws and looking her in the eye, "can you remember ANY details about the memory? Any at all?"

Grace bit the inside of her beak. "Y-Y-Yes, but... I-It's not important. T-The smoke was probably m-making me imagine things."

"Tell me," Perry urged.

"I thought I saw a figure," Grace admitted. "A w-white figure who was hiding behind one of the trees."

Perry's eyes widened. "What else do you remember about the figure? Anything?"

Grace squeezed her eyes shut tight to try and remember more. "I-It had blue eyes," she said finally. "Fairly long ears, too."

Perry immediately let go of her paws and snarled down at the ground. That sounded almost exactly like Dennis. Was it HIS fault Fiona was dead?!

"Dad?" Grace asked nervously, looking slightly scared at her father's reaction.

"Grace... Get back to sleep," Perry said firmly, barely managing to force himself to relax. "I'll be right here with you." He forced a smile.

Grace smiled weakly back. "O-Okay. Night, Dad." She closed her eyes and rested on her bed.

Perry's smile grew more genuine, and he gently stroked his daughter's side. "Goodnight, sweetheart."

It had been about two days since she had moved into the house, and she was already comfortable and fitting in well. It had been two days since anything eventful had really happened.

But that was going to change tomorrow.

 **(...)**

Perry practically stormed into the O.W.C.A-Traz and the room with Dennis' cell the next morning. He had left Grace at home, where she'd be safe.

Dennis raised an eyebrow as Perry stepped into the room with his cell. "Perry! Long time, no see, am I right?"

"Start talking," Perry snapped. "What do you know about a fire on a specific group of trees in the Tri-State Forest during the RAINY season?"

"Wow... Not even a greeting? Where did this come from?"

"Five years ago!" Perry continued angrily. "Five years ago, someone I was close to died in those conditions. A surviving witness I spoke to yesterday said that she saw someone that looked an awful lot like you watching!"

Dennis paused. "Well, she couldn't have seen me."

"What evidence do you have to prove that?"

"Use common sense, Perry!" Dennis snapped. "I haven't managed to escape this prison in OVER five years! Had I escaped around that time, you would have probably been the first to know!"

He sighed. "I was not on the loose then. Anytime that year, in fact. That witness couldn't have seen me."

The rabbit paused. "However..."

Perry growled. "If I find out you have a secret clone..."

Dennis chuckled. "Don't worry, I don't. I don't think that witness saw a guy. Putting two and two together... It was a female."

The platypus raised an eyebrow. "Better start explaining."

"Perry..." Dennis sighed. "I don't technically have a clone, but I might as well. I have one of the closest things to that...a little sister."

"You?" Perry blinked.

"Well, don't act TOO surprised." Dennis smirked. "But... Yes. I do. Her name's Denise. She's three years younger than me... Probably about your age. And she and I are almost identical."

Perry scoffed. "How coincidental."

"Just listen to me," Dennis insisted. "About five years ago, she finally found me in this cell." He chuckled. "Like any concerned little sis, she found a way to sneak in and see me."

He bit his lip. "She asked how she could help get me out, and I told her to spy on you to figure a way out. Denise agreed and left, going to find a way to bust me out..."

"Why are you seriously telling me this?" Perry asked in confusion.

"BECAUSE it's been five years!" Dennis snarled. "That little traitor never came back."

Perry crossed his arms and scowled. "I think I would have figured it out by now if someone had been spying on me for five years."

"Exactly! Perry, I'm ratting out my sister to you because of that! Something diverted her attention, and I think you'll want to find out what as much as me!" Dennis paused. "Especially since she apparently started that fire."

"I hope you know that I don't believe you," Perry snapped. He hesitated. "But... I am curious about this. I..." He sighed. "I might as well look into it."

Dennis smirked. "Wonderful." He leaned back against the wall of his cell. "Make sure to come and talk to me when you've solved everything."

Perry just glared before leaving the room. Thoughts were tumbling through his brain as he dazedly walked away. Dennis had a sister? HAD she killed Fiona?

And if so, then... Why?


	12. Chapter 11

**I wrote almost this entire chapter tonight, which I am very proud of xD xD Now, it IS a shorter chapter than normal, but there's a lot to take in with it xD xD**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

Perry slowly walked back home from the O.W.C.A-Traz, thoughts pulsing through his mind. Did Dennis REALLY have a sister? Or had Dennis just made her up for situations like this? The logic he had used made sense...

Suddenly, Perry was pulled out of his thoughts because a white shape landed in front of him. "Gosh, I finally caught you alone. You almost never are these days."

Perry blinked and looked at the figure in front of him. It was a white rabbit with blue eyes... A female. Perry's eyes narrowed at her slightly. "Wait... Are you Denise?"

The rabbit grinned evilly. "Aw, you DO know my name!" Her voice was fairly high-pitched. Not super high, but enough to be irritating. "You just got back from talking with my dear, old big brother, didn't you?"

Perry bit the inside of his beak. "He said you were supposed to be helping him escape. Five years ago."

"Oh. That." Denise sighed. "My brother actually brought his whining to his worst enemy, did he? Pathetic, Dennis," she mumbled.

 _But if she's real..._ Perry scowled. "Instead, according to a witness, you were spotted at a fire someone died in- I'm assuming you lighted it."

Denise giggled. "Maybe."

Perry snarled and attacked her, holding her tightly and glaring into her eyes. "Someone I CARED FOR died in that fire!"

The rabbit's smile vanished. "I know. And it didn't have the affect on you that I was hoping it would."

"W-What do you mean?"

It was Denise's turn to scowl. "I KNOW you cared for her. I know you two were a thing." She paused. "Let me tell you a story.

"Once, five years ago, I crept in to where my big brother was being held and asked him how I could help break him out. He told me to spy on a certain platypus to find a way to free him. Eager to help, I agreed and vanished to find the platypus.

"I did that without ease. After a week, I noticed that I couldn't figure out why Dennis hated the platypus so much. When I made that discovery, I quickly realized that I had feelings for the platypus."

Perry's eyes widened. _What?!_

Denise continued. "After another week, I realized that I was in love. I decided it was time to reveal myself to him and see how he'd react to seeing me. But just as I was about to leave my hiding spot, I saw a brown, female platypus approach and nuzzle against him."

The rabbit scowled again. "Dennis had warned me to never let my heart open to anyone, and I learned why that day. I immediately wanted revenge, but I didn't know how to get it."

Her scowl changed into a sneer. "Then I got my chance. I found the female platypus' new home- which just so happened to be extremely flammable. I set it on fire and watched with pleasure as she never emerged."

Perry snarled. "You DID kill her!"

"I did," Denise smirked back. "AND I know her name. Fiona."

After everything Perry had just heard, hearing hearing this made him let go of her and stumble backwards. That was like a blow to the head.

Denise's smile faded again. "I knew that would work," she snarled. Before Perry could react, she shoved him hard and sent him falling hard onto the concrete. When Perry finally got back to his feet, Denise was gone. Just like that.


	13. Chapter 12

**These chapters I've been writing lately have turned out shorter than I've been planning….. Oh, well xD xD xD Short chapter for you guys. I have the feeling the next one will be longer.**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

 **(Perry's POV)**

Perry dazedly made the rest of his way home, trying to process what he had just learned. Dennis... He had a little sister? She had killed Fiona? Grace had lost her MOTHER because of her!

When Perry finally got home, he stepped in and called, "Grace?"

No response.

Perry went upstairs and called her name again.

No response again.

Perry peeked out the window. He hesitated and pulled out his phone when she wasn't in the backyard. Perry dialed up his friend and waited nervously.

"Perry?"

"Ellie! Listen... Grace isn't here at the house. Do you know if she's at HQ?"

Elizabeth hesitated over the phone. "I... I'll check."

"Thanks," Perry said gratefully. "And I'll head over myself."

"Alright. See you soon, Perry. Bye."

 **(...)**

When Perry made it to O.W.C.A, he was greeted by a worried Elizabeth outside. "Ellie? What's wrong?"

"Perry, Grace isn't here!" Ellie bit her lip, pacing. "She's not here, and you said she wasn't at your house. Where else could she be?!"

"What?!" Perry blinked in shock. "Grace isn't here either?!"

"No, she isn't! I just looked everywhere!"

"I'm going to check myself," Perry said firmly before racing past her into the building.

 **(...)**

Ellie was right. Grace wasn't at O.W.C.A, either. Only a few minutes after Perry had searched through every nook and cranny of HQ himself, he was in a room with the rest of his team, anxiously pacing back and forth in front of them.

"Perry, we'll find Grace," Karen reassured.

"How?!" Perry snapped anxiously, looking up at her. "We don't even have anywhere to start!"

Everyone was silent for a minute, until there was a small beeping. Harry blinked and pointed behind Perry, who had stopped pacing. "Um... P? Your laptop's turning on..."

Perry whirled around. Sure enough, it was, just like it did whenever he got a message. His team scrambled around him as a message popped up on screen.

"'Unknown sender'...?" Elizabeth breathed. "What?"

"It's a video, Perry the platypus," Heinz spoke up.

"I can see that!" Perry snapped back. He exhaled slowly to calm himself and hit play on the video.

The camera focused on what looked a bit like a dirt wall for a moment before it was jerked down. Perry growled as soon as he saw the blue-eyed face of a white rabbit.

"Dennis the rabbit?" Doof asked in amazement.

Perry shook his head. "That's his little sister, Denise."

"Quite the resemblance," Karen mumbled.

They all fell silent as Denise began to speak. "I bet you're getting this, Perry," she smirked. "So listen closely.

I'm sure you remember that night with the fire, even though you weren't there. I knew that you and Fiona had a child together, but I thought I got rid of her along with her mother that night."

Devise chuckled and shook her head. "Oh, how wrong I was. No wonder your feelings for Fiona never changed; I never completely got rid of all your ties to her."

Perry's heart began to race as he started following her thought process. The rabbit grinned evilly and stepped aside to reveal a brown-furred, brown-eyed female platypus tied up and against the wall.

"Grace!" Perry gasped.

Denise sneered at the camera before turning to the terrified child. "Come on. Beg for him to help."

Grace gulped and shook her head firmly. "N-No. D-Dad will s-save me a-a-as soon as he sees t-this. I-I'm not g-going to do what you w-w-want."

Denise scowled and turned back to the camera. "I'm giving you one hour to come save her. If you don't make it... Well, I hope you enjoyed being a father."

Just like that, the camera flickered off, leaving the team in silence.


	14. Chapter 13

**Sorry for the wait, guys. I actually finished this chapter, like, over a week ago, but I kept forgetting to post this xP Whoops. (Also, I joined another fandom I'm currently very passionate about- Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir xD I'm posting a "story" for that tonight, and I'm probably gonna end up focusing on it- even though I legit only have two chapters of this story left after this -_-)**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHIENAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

 **(Perry's POV)**

"That slippery little rabbit has my daughter," Perry snarled.

"What did she mean by mentioning the fire?" Elizabeth asked nervously.

"She's the one who set the fire that killed Fiona." Perry scowled. "And now she wants to kill my daughter."

Karen crossed her arms. "So how do we save her?"

Perry sighed. "I... I don't know where to start..."

"It looked almost like the walls were made of dirt in the video," Harry pointed out. "Maybe in a burrow somewhere?"

"Oh, 'cause that REALLY narrows it down, Harry!" Karen glared.

"Hey, I'm trying to help!"

"He's trying to help, he's trying to help!" Maggie squawked.

"Everyone!" Doofenshmirtz raised his voice. "We need to stay calm!"

"Heinz is right," Elizabeth agreed. "And so are the rest of you. Wherever Denise is, she's underground. However, that's really all we know. Perry? Do you know anything that could help?"

Perry hesitated. "She must live somewhere in Danville, or at least the Tri-State Area. I feel like she's been spying on me for years."

"Creepy," Karen mumbled.

"So she's underground and somewhere in the Tri-State Area," Harry mused. "Still not very helpful."

Ellie paused. "Well, let's think about this logically. It wouldn't make sense to live under a neighborhood or town... That knocks off lots of land."

"I doubt she'd within a mile O.W.C.A," Doof spoke up.

Perry thought. "That... That leaves the Tri-State Forest!"

Harry shot Karen a smug look. "See? I WAS helpful."

Karen rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Let's just go save Grace."

 **(Ellie's POV)**

Perry sighed as he and the rest of the team stood in front of the Tri-State Forest. "We have less than an hour to find Denise and save Grace..."

Ellie placed a paw on his shoulder. "We can do this," she smiled reassuringly. "We will get her back; I promise."

"We'd better," Perry growled. "I don't care if it's wrong or not: if Denise kills Grace as well as Fiona, I'm going to kill her."

"Perry...!"

Perry closed his eyes. "Let's just go find them." He shook off Elizabeth's paw and headed into the forest.

The echidna bit her lip and turned to Karen, who was also watching concernedly. "He still hasn't recovered from losing Fiona... If he loses Grace, this...just might about break him."

Karen sighed. "You're right..." She gestured to everyone else to follow Perry into the forest.

As they walked, the cat hesitated. "Elizabeth... Do you think Perry will ever move on from Fiona?"

"I honestly don't know," Elizabeth admitted. "But I know it won't be with me."

Karen blinked. "Does... Does that mean I have a chance with him...?"

Ellie sighed. "No clue. I don't know what Perry thinks. But... If you want me to be completely honest... I doubt it. From what I've seen, he doesn't have any romantic attraction to you. However... I'm not speaking on behalf of him, and I feel bad for straight up shooting down any hope you have of getting with him."

"But he's grieving Fiona," Karen said quietly. "I'd feel terrible if I just came up to him and asked him how he felt about me."

"I completely understand," Ellie promised. "I was in the exact same position not long ago."

Karen frowned. "Yeah... What happened there?"

Elizabeth sighed. "The day we got Grace back... I'm not sure what came over me. Maybe I was trying to take comfort in it or something, but... I kissed him. We were alone in a room together, and I kissed him."

She squeezed her eyes shut. "I still feel terrible... But... He wasn't angry. I thought he would be, but... Instead, he gently told me that he didn't feel for me that way. He said that he did think of me like a little sister, though, and not just a friend."

Ellie exhaled. "I don't know how Perry views you. But... Despite what he's going through... He can handle talking about that and still be nice about it."

Karen nodded slowly. "Alright... Thanks, Elizabeth."

"No problem."

 **(Perry's POV)**

Perry heard the girls talking behind him, but he was too focused on finding Denise and saving Grace to notice what they were saying. He would stop at every turn, peek into every crevice, feeling in every shadow, hoping to find some indication of a burrow.

Finally, when there was no luck, he stopped and turned back to the rest of the group. "We need to split up and search the forest, but it's too dangerous by ourselves with Denise on the loose," Perry explained. "That's why we'll split up into pairs. Doof and Karen, Harry and Maggie, and me and Elizabeth."

All the agents nodded in understanding. Everyone split off into their respective pairs and vanished into the trees. Perry set off walking again, and Elizabeth followed him.

"So what do we do if WE find Denise?" Elizabeth asked.

"Attack and rescue Grace."

"Just the two of us?"

"If we're the ones who find them."

"But what about the others?"

"If we run into them, great!"

Ellie frowned. "Perry, do you really think it's a good idea to try and take on Denise by ourselves?"

Perry glanced over at her. "Do you think we won't be able to?"

"I THINK we shouldn't risk it." Elizabeth sighed. "Perry, I know you got trained to work by yourself, but you AND the rest of the team trained me. I'm comfortable in a team, and I don't know how much use I'll be in a fight with just you by my side."

Perry didn't reply for what felt like several minutes. "Ellie..." he began finally, "I'm sorry, but... Grace's life is on the line, and I don't want to waste any time. If I..."

His voice broke, and he swallowed. "I-If I lost Grace, too, I-I... I don't know what I'd do."

Elizabeth hesitated and gently took his paw in hers. "Perry, we will get her back. Don't worry. Not only will Denise have to deal with you, she'll have to get through the rest of us before we let her harm your daughter."

Perry smiled weakly. "Thanks, Ellie." He exhaled. "Let's find them."

 **(...)**

After about fifteen minutes with no success, Perry began to panic, but he managed to stay calm on the outside. They only had another forty or so minutes to find and rescue Grace.

He glanced over at Elizabeth, but... She wasn't there. "Ellie?"

No response.

"Elizabeth? Where are you?"

His heart was beginning to race, but that was when he heard a faint response. "Perry! I'm okay!"

 _Oh, thank goodness._ Perry exhaled in relief. "Ellie? Where are you?"

"I slipped into a hole! Follow my voice!"

Perry did that, yet cautiously. He knew Elizabeth's voice by heart, and that was her, but it could still have been a trap. However, he did find the echidna, and, sure enough, she had just fallen into a hole. "Perry! I might have found it!"

The platypus slid down next to her and looked where she was pointing. There was a rock wall about a foot in the tunnel-like hole, but when Perry studied it, it looked slightly out of place. "Hmm..."

He reached forward and felt around the wall, eventually hearing a click. Perry and Elizabeth both backed away as the wall split in half and slowly backed away into the dirt.

"We did find it," Ellie breathed.

"Let's go get Grace," Perry said, beginning to walk into the tunnel the walls revealed.

But Elizabeth caught his paw. "What about the others?"

"Ellie, we have a time limit. I'm not spending it looking for help that we probably won't even need and risking my daughter's life. If you really want the rest of the team, go find them yourself. I'm going in."

Perry heard Elizabeth swallow as she let go of her paw. As he crept down the tunnel, he couldn't tell if she was following him or not.

He was grateful for the dirt floor, which helped mute the sound of his footsteps, but the problem was that he couldn't tell if someone was behind him or not. When Perry reached a small clearing with a branch off into two other tunnels, he cautiously turned around.

Ellie was there. She gave him a small, nervous smile. "What do we do now?" she whispered.

Perry paused in thought. "You go down one tunnel, I'll go down the other. If one of us finds something down our tunnel, we can go get the other."

Elizabeth nodded slowly. "That sounds good. Good luck."

"Good luck to you, too." And they split off down the halls.

As Perry crept down his tunnel, he could have sworn that he heard footsteps nearby, but he couldn't tell because of the dirt floor.

He was just reaching another clearing when he thought he heard Elizabeth's voice coming towards him. "Perry! I think I found something!"

Perry turned around to see the echidna racing towards him, but then something hit him hard, and everything went black.


	15. Chapter 14

**Hey, sorry about the long wait for the update; I had been having a problem writing recently. Luckily, I think it's mostly passed by now ;) So this is the finale of the climax, but not the whole story**

 **USA Patriot: I'm really happy to see you're so excited to read this story :D I don't have many readers on any of my stories, so it makes me extremely glad to see you enjoy this xP And here you go: you can finally see what happens to everyone ;) Sorry again about the wait**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTER YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE IS PROBABLY MINE**

 **(Ellie's POV)**

Elizabeth saw Perry get knocked out and immediately pressed herself against the wall. A white rabbit stepped out of her hiding spot within reach of Perry and smirked. Not noticing Elizabeth, she grabbed the unconscious platypus and vanished down the tunnel.

The echidna let out a soft gasp and raced back to the entrance. When she was safely out of the tunnel, she pulled out her phone and called up the first group she thought of.

Doofenshmirtz picked up. "Elizabeth?"

"We found Denise," Elizabeth said immediately. "Well... She found us...and got Perry. She captured him."

"What?! Where are you?!"

"I'll send you the coordinates," Ellie replied, typing them into her phone. "Wait outside when you get them."

After that, she was about to call up Harry and Maggie, but then she heard wings flapping. Elizabeth looked up and saw Maggie flying above her. "Maggie!"

The macaw froze, and Ellie called again. "Maggie!"

This time, Maggie was able to figure out where Ellie was and fluttered down to her. "Go get Harry and bring him here," Elizabeth instructed. "It's an emergency."

Maggie nodded and flew off again.

 **(Perry's POV)**

Perry groaned. _My head..._ What had happened?

His eyes slowly flickered open, and he immediately began to remember things. They had found Denise's hideout, but she had managed to attack and capture him while he wasn't expecting it. She must have knocked him out and set him up here.

He was handcuffed to a pole, his feet also in restraints. Denise must have heard about his skill to escape traps from Dennis.

Perry immediately began struggling, even though he knew it was no use. What about the rest of his team? How long had he been unconscious? Had Denise already killed Grace?

That last thought sent horrible chills up Perry's spine.

Luckily, though, that was when he heard the familiar voice of his daughter. "W-Where are you taking me? Let me go!"

"Just relax," replied an exasperated voice. Perry growled. _Denise_. "This will all be over soon." Perry had a feeling he knew all-too well what she meant.

In stepped Denise, dragging a pole behind her. And tied onto that pole? Grace. "Dad!" She noticed him as Denise began to set her pole up again.

"Grace!" Perry began struggling again, looking around for something to help him escape.

"Aw, a family reunion," Denise sneered. "Too bad it won't last long. Unfortunately, Perry, it has now been," she glanced at a watch on her wrist, "fifty-eight minutes since I sent the video. Oh! Make that fifty-nine."

"No!" Perry gasped.

Denise just let out some sort of evil giggle and pulled out a knife. "Don't waste your breath and just say goodbye, Perry. You haven't even known her that long anyway."

"Don't hurt her!" Perry growled. "Let her go! It's me you want!"

"Actually, it's not!" Denise snapped back. "I just want you to know the pain I felt! My heart was ripped to shreds, and I want you to know what that feels like!"

"I do know what that feels like! I knew that pain before you killed Fiona!" Perry swallowed. "I knew that pain before I met Fiona," he said softly, his voice breaking and his eyes turning to the ground.

He inhaled deeply and looked back up to meet Denise's eyes. "I know a WHOLE bunch about heartbreak. Probably more than you. So there. Your plan's useless. Now let...her...go."

A glimmer of light had flashed in Denise's eyes for a second, but her face went dark again quickly. "She needs to die, Perry."

Denise pressed the knife against Grace's fur. The little platypus gulped and closed her eyes. "Now... Where should I start?"

Perry glanced around for anything that could help his daughter, but the room was completely clean of those objects. His only hope now was the rest of his team. _Come on, guys..._

Denise had apparently decided where to start her knife, because she paused for a moment before digging it in at Grace's hip. Grace let out a yelp, and Perry grimaced and looked away...

... Just as he heard a sound from above. Everyone's head whipped up to the ceiling as a whole in the roof appeared. "What the...?!" Denise scowled.

First dropped down three familiar people: a red macaw, a purple hyena, and a yellow cat. Perry exhaled in utter relief as Maggie, Harry, and Karen all began to attack Denise, also forcing her into another room.

Then came Heinz and Elizabeth. "Perry!" Elizabeth breathed in relief. She set to work with his bindings. "Doof, help Grace and get out of here like we went over. The rest of us'll take down Denise."

Doofensmirtz nodded and untied Perry's extremely shaken daughter before gently helping her back through the roof.

"It's good to see you," Perry grinned as playfully as he could, now feeling more comfortable because Grace was out of harms way.

Ellie chuckled. "Same to you. Do you know where the keys to these handcuffs are?"

"No clue," Perry frowned. "Trust me, I would have found someway to get to them if I knew. There's probably some sort of secret code to help, though, or a way to loosen the handcuffs without undoing them-"

"Or we could just hit it with a rock," Elizabeth suggested.

Perry suddenly heard a smashing on metal behind him. "Where did you get it?"

The handcuffs fell to the floor. "Perry, we are under a forest." The echidna bent down to untie Perry's feet.

"Point taken." As soon as Perry felt the ropes loosen, he stepped forward and stretched his arms. "Now let's go take care of Denise."

"The O.W.C.A-Traz has a special place reserved for her beside her brother," Ellie grinned back.

They exchanged a short glance before racing off down the hall after their teammates.

 **One more chapter, guys…. Then the story's over. Don't worry, though, I've actually already finished it ;) I am going to wait a couple of days before posting it, just so you guys can go on and read this.**

 **Also... Temple of Juatchadoon reference! :D xD xD**


	16. Epilogue

**Hey, guys! Sorry about how long it took to get this last chapter out :( I didn't manage to post it before my schedule got very busy. I went on two short trips that lasted a couple weeks altogether, and then I…well, just forgot to post this till tonight xD Whoops. Also, this is just the epilogue, so it's really short.**

 **I DO NOT OWN PHINEAS AND FERB. ANY CHARACTERS YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE ARE PROBABLY MINE**

The fight itself was pretty easy. Denise was a threat when she was fighting one on one with someone else, but it was different when she was surrounded on all sides by five well-trained agents. After only fighting for a few minutes after Perry and Elizabeth joined in, Denise just raised her paws and gave up.

Some other O.W.C.A. agents came and took her to the O.W.C.A-Traz while Perry and his team left the hideout and went to where Doofenshmirtz and Grace were.

"Dad!" As soon as Perry and Grace could see each other, Grace rushed up to him and hugged him.

Perry hugged her tightly back. "Oh, I'm so glad you're alright!" He backed away. "How badly did she hurt you?"

Grace swallowed and placed a paw on her hip. Perry gently looked where she gestured. "It's just a scratch; I'm fine."

Her father exhaled in relief as he saw that she was right. "Okay, let's go home."

 **(Grace's POV)**

Grace wasn't sure who was more shaken from the ordeal: Perry, or herself. On one hand, Grace was the one who had basically been at death's door, but... Perry had already lost so much, and he almost lost more. His parents, his mate... He almost lost Grace...not to mention what he had told Denise...

Grace inhaled slowly; they had gotten home a while ago, and Major Monogram had allowed Perry a week off to recover with her. "Dad?"

Perry looked over at her and smiled softly. "What is it, sweetheart?"

"W-When you were talking to Denise, you... You said you knew how heartbreak felt before you even met Mom..."

Perry's smile fell. "Oh..." He inhaled deeply. "I guess you have a right to know. Grace... Fiona wasn't my first love."

Grace blinked in surprise. "Really?"

He nodded slowly. "Yeah... About a year before I met her, I met someone else. We...started a relationship and..." Perry inhaled again, this time a bit shaky. "It didn't work out. Let's leave it at that."

"Okay..." Grace nodded, frowning sympathetically.

Perry came closer and gave his daughter a tight hug. "It's okay, though," he said softly. "I've got you and my friends, and that's all I need."

Grace smiled, closing her eyes. Perry was right. Fiona might have died, but Grace had her father, and his friends were already taking her in as family.

And that... That was enough.

 **And, just like that, the story's done. Thanks for all your support, guys! :D Also, keep an eye out for the sequel! Normally, I have the first chapter of the sequel written before I've finished the original story, but I didn't manage to do it this time xD So I'm not sure when the sequel will be posted, but it should hopefully be in at least two or so months. But you'll know it when you see it; it'll be called Stitches (yes, after the Shawn Mendes song xD) ;)**


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